IMPIOUS Synonyms: 40 Similar and Opposite Words

impious

adjective

ˈim-pē-əs

Definition of impious

as in atheistic

not showing proper reverence for the holy or sacred an impious act that horrified their pious mother

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of impious Many other traditionalists have made a version of Scruton’s critique, insisting that contemporary art reflects self-indulgent, relativistic, and impious tendencies. — Luis Parrales, The Atlantic, 28 Apr. 2026 While no formal announcement has been made to update its longstanding alcohol ban, Andrew Leber of Tulane University said this is in line with the Kingdom’s past approach to such potentially impious reforms. — Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025 How impious is the title of sacred Majesty applied to a worm, who in the midst of his splendor is crumbling into dust! — Charles Hilu, Washington Post, 4 Nov. 2025 This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious. — Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 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

Recent Examples of Synonyms for impious

Adjective

His father's death during World War II influenced his pursuit of the ministry even amid the officially atheistic communist regime of the Soviet Union, according to his obituary on the OCU website.

— ABC News, ABC News, 20 Mar. 2026
But there has been a recent rise in secular congregations that explicitly mimic religious organizations and rituals to celebrate atheistic worldviews.

— Jacqui Frost, The Conversation, 11 Jan. 2024

Definition of atheistic

Adjective

He may have been born in Cordoba, northern Argentina, but after five years at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the notion of Romero being allowed to head the four miles south to the Emirates feels extremely problematic at best, sacrilegious at worst.

— Tim Spiers, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2026
Because xenia rested on mutual trust, violating it was considered not just rude but sacrilegious.

— Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 19 July 2026

Definition of sacrilegious

Adjective

The image of him, his attire a blasphemous betrayal of the wholesome fun a clown costume promises, and with vibrant, colorful balloons in his hand, lingers in our minds for a long time.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2026
But when The Satanic Verses was published in 1988, the novel was declared by some as blasphemous, and then-Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa for Rushdie to be assassinated, leading the author to go into hiding until 1998.

— Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of blasphemous

Adjective

Treasuries were more than a decade into a massive secular bull market as the '90s bubble inflated.

— Michael Santoli, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026
Sunita Viswanath, executive director of Hindus for Human Rights, said her group is one of 61 interfaith and secular organizations that signed an open letter protesting Saturday’s event.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of secular

Adjective

In keeping with the irreverent spirit of the Ig Nobel Prizes, the physical awards themselves are anything but conventional.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Aug. 2026
That sensibility could be playful, irreverent and suspicious of authority.

— Andrew Silow-Carroll, Sun Sentinel, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of irreverent

Adjective

There’s more than a tinge of folk horror to this lingering mystery, which brings to mind the 1973 genre landmark The Wicker Man, in which a puritanical police officer travels to a remote island community that’s reverted to old pagan ways.

— Keith Phipps, Vulture, 15 June 2026
Glenn Turner, the former owner of a pagan and metaphysical shop, is running as a member of the Green Party.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026

Definition of pagan

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impinging

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impish

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“Impious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impious. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of impious

adjective

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