1
as in atheistic
lacking religious emotions, principles, or practices
grew up in a nonreligious family
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in secular
not involving religion or religious matters
a display of nonreligious holiday decorations on municipally owned property
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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 nonreligious
Many children raised by devout parents and teachers still embrace their parents’ beliefs, but ever-fewer young people raised in less committed or entirely nonreligious families and schools espouse religious faith.
—
Foreign Affairs, 21 Oct. 2025
The suit was filed by 15 Texas families with multifaith and nonreligious backgrounds against 14 school districts, including Fort Worth, Arlington, Northwest, Azle and Mansfield ISDs.
—Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Sep. 2025
At the same time, some opponents – including Jewish, Christian, Unitarian Universalist, Hindu and nonreligious plaintiffs – do not necessarily wish to remove religion entirely from educational institutions.
—Lydia Artz, The Conversation, 5 Sep. 2025
Associated Press What To Know The plaintiffs include Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Unitarian Universalist and nonreligious families who have children in public schools.
—Jenna Sundel
gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nonreligious
Foreign Affairs, 21 Oct. 2025
The suit was filed by 15 Texas families with multifaith and nonreligious backgrounds against 14 school districts, including Fort Worth, Arlington, Northwest, Azle and Mansfield ISDs.
—Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Sep. 2025
At the same time, some opponents – including Jewish, Christian, Unitarian Universalist, Hindu and nonreligious plaintiffs – do not necessarily wish to remove religion entirely from educational institutions.
—Lydia Artz, The Conversation, 5 Sep. 2025
Associated Press What To Know The plaintiffs include Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Unitarian Universalist and nonreligious families who have children in public schools.
—Jenna Sundel
gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nonreligious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nonreligious
Adjective
-
Rabbi Andrew Schultz, executive director of the Community Alliance for Jewish Affiliated Cemeteries, said this option does not align with Jewish burial traditions, though many secular Jews inquire about alternate practices.—
Hannah Kliger,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Judging by her writings, Raha belonged to a milieu in Tehran where the arts are a secular religion.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
6 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And even the irreligious Bill de Blasio would join parishioners at the cathedral.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Stewart’s switch from his usual snark to imitate Colbert’s buffoonery proved how spiteful and irreligious political humor has become since the left’s worship of Barack Obama and subsequent persecution of President Trump.—
Armond White,
National Review,
25 July 2025
Adjective
-
What looked like ideological bias was, more often, temporal lag.—
Charles Edward Gehrke,
Fortune,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Again and again, Tennyson fills his beautifully wrought poems with enormous, unfathomable depths—sometimes cosmic, sometimes temporal, sometimes psychological, often oceanic.—
Kathryn Schulz,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
His stories, particularly the later ones, center around the idea that the Universe is a godless cosmos that is entirely indifferent to humanity.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Predictably, the hubbub surrounding the photo was eventually framed as a war between uptight virgins and godless heathens, with a quieter contingent astounded only by the fact that this kind of marketing could still be so effective.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Groundhog Day is its pagan echo — a reading of light and shadow, an old way of guessing at spring.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Over the course of that months-long reporting, a picture has emerged of the radical characters involved with the property, including a notorious neo-Nazi family and a pagan mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
15 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nonreligious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonreligious. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
