as in atheistical
not showing proper reverence for the holy or sacred
an impious act that horrified their pious mother
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Recent Examples of impious
The only true dictionary is the lost one, the dictionary of the language that perished when the impious tower was built: the original language, God’s language.
—
Mariana Dimópulos, Harpers Magazine, 26 Mar. 2025
This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious.
—Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 2024
This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious.
—Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 22 May 2024
Both narratives, private and public, differently restrict our access, so the ideal historian will need great tact and an impious curiosity.
—James Wood, The New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2023
Sarah Thompson, the MFA’s curator of Japanese Art, and curatorial assistant Kendall DeBoer, who put the show’s more than 350 works together, deserve credit for being impious, not reverent.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Mar. 2023
To cut short these death throes is both impious (for those who believe) and immoral (for anyone).
—Michel Houellebecq, Harper’s Magazine , 6 Jan. 2023
Bragadin’s cash was funding heavy gambling and elaborate, impious scenes of seduction.
—Clare Bucknell, Harper’s Magazine , 26 Oct. 2022
Bragadin’s cash was funding heavy gambling and elaborate, impious scenes of seduction.
—Clare Bucknell, Harper’s Magazine , 26 Oct. 2022
Mariana Dimópulos, Harpers Magazine, 26 Mar. 2025
This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious.
—Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 2024
This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious.
—Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 22 May 2024
Both narratives, private and public, differently restrict our access, so the ideal historian will need great tact and an impious curiosity.
—James Wood, The New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2023
Sarah Thompson, the MFA’s curator of Japanese Art, and curatorial assistant Kendall DeBoer, who put the show’s more than 350 works together, deserve credit for being impious, not reverent.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Mar. 2023
To cut short these death throes is both impious (for those who believe) and immoral (for anyone).
—Michel Houellebecq, Harper’s Magazine , 6 Jan. 2023
Bragadin’s cash was funding heavy gambling and elaborate, impious scenes of seduction.
—Clare Bucknell, Harper’s Magazine , 26 Oct. 2022
Bragadin’s cash was funding heavy gambling and elaborate, impious scenes of seduction.
—Clare Bucknell, Harper’s Magazine , 26 Oct. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impious
Adjective
-
Surely, there’s something utterly sacrilegious about laughing hysterically at actors giving God the middle finger.—
Michael James Rocha,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 June 2025
-
Some of this may seem sacrilegious to the F1 fans who got into the sport because of Emerson Fittipaldi, Alain Prost, and Aryton Senna, rather than Drive to Survive, but there’s no denying that the Miami Grand Prix is a success.—
Bryan Hood,
Robb Report,
8 May 2025
Adjective
-
In Europe, the painting was received as a blasphemous shock.—
Alexandra Schwartz,
New Yorker,
11 July 2025
-
There’s a quiet and, some might argue, blasphemous revolution happening.—
Trinity Francis,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
In India, the demands of blood and soil are now pitted against the exalted idea of a more secular country.—
Aatish Taseer,
Time,
15 July 2025
-
As Costa tells it, even the turmoil of the ensuing years, which included a brutal military dictatorship and multiple impeachments, were still at heart secular: Humans, however flawed and at times incredibly cruel, remained at the root of these decisions.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
11 July 2025
Adjective
-
This is where Dan Da Dan does not care about offending anyone, as its approach to these matters is entirely irreverent and very funny.—
Ollie Barder,
Forbes.com,
13 July 2025
-
For those who like their Superman classically drawn, Gunn’s film will probably seem too irreverent and messy.—
Jake Coyle,
Mercury News,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Impious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impious. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
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