as in barbarian
not civilized
found it heathenish for the teenagers to carouse through the graveyard, showing no respect for the dead
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Recent Examples of heathenish
So repealing the Johnson Amendment is just another layer of concrete in the foundation of trust between this heathenish president and his loyal conservative Christian flock.
—
Ed Kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, 2 Nov. 2017
Ed Kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, 2 Nov. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heathenish
Adjective
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Ashley Johnson and star/executive producer Travis Willingham tee up what's coming for their soft barbarian lady.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Oct. 2025
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As a benevolent barbarian warrior in the mythical land of Hyrkania, Sonja is enslaved and imprisoned by the ecocidal emperor known as Draygan (Robert Sheehan).—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Rain, April’s rude house guest, visits erratically and unannounced.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
3 Apr. 2026
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Some lawyers think a video shows a Texas judge being rude to an IT worker.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The loss of books is minor, almost trivial, in light of all the horrors and violence unleashed by this senseless war, but the potential loss of these books is a sad reminder that we’re all affected and implicated in America’s savage flailings.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
17 Mar. 2026
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Conan O'Brien hit almost every note on Sunday — savage, playful, heartfelt and dumb.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Her work plainly belongs to this lineage of witchy writers, women whose deliciously corrupted scenes of home and hearth produce fear and wild laughter at once.—
Kristen Roupenian,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
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Sure, there were errant 3-pointers, and a wild reverse layup that was way off in the third quarter.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
6 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heathenish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heathenish. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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