Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity

Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity By Maeve Maddox With the topic of religion so much in the air, writers may have use for adjectives to describe various degrees of religious feeling and behavior. The following words have other meanings, but here the focus is on their use to describe people. religious dedicated to religious practice; observant practitioner of a particular religion. The word derives from Latin, possibly the verb religare, to tie back. The word may carry negative connotations for individuals, (Bill Maher, for example), but in general it is a good all-purpose word, in itself neither positive nor negative. pious in earlier writers, pious was used in a positive sense of loyalty to religion, family, and those things for which a person might be expected to feel reverence. Current usage tends to tinge the word with hypocrisy. Ex. His pious remarks about family values concealed the fact that he was sleeping with his neighbors wife. godly pleasing to God. One speaks of a godly person or a godly life. The negative, ungodly, is often used as a term of contempt by religious people to describe anything contrary to their beliefs. fervent derives from a Latin word meaning to boil or to be very hot. A fervent person is one that feels very intensely about a subject. The subject does not need to be religious in nature. One can be a fervent Catholic, or a fervent environmentalist. Or both. zealous This adjective derives from the noun Zealot. The Zealots were members of the sect that worked to drive the Romans out of Palestine during the First Century. They were fanatics who resorted to assassination and other acts of terrorism that eventually resulted in the destruction of the Temple and the expulsion of the Jews from Jerusalem. Zealous, therefore, can carry the sense of intense fanaticism that will stop at nothing to promote its cause. devout from the verb devote, to set apart. The word connotes a sense of consecration. A devout person practices religion from genuine feeling of reverence for the object of worship. sanctimonious Until the 1800s, this word had a positive connotation. It derives from the Latin word for holy. A sanctimonious life could be one that reflects good deeds and devout religious observance. In current usage, however, sanctimonious carries the sense of hypocrisy. Indeed, a common expression is sanctimonious hypocrite. A sanctimonious person is like the Pharisee who prays and gives alms in public so that everyone can admire him for it. A sanctimonious person is always reminding people of their shortcomings. fanatic This word, which also gives us the word fan as in movie fan, comes from Latin fanaticus which had a religious sense. A fanum was a temple where sometimes very wild manifestations of devotion took place. For example, worshippers inspired to a frenzy by the god might cut themselves. A fanatic therefore, is out of control, at least as regards a particular subject. Winston Churchill defined a fanatic as someone who cant change his mind and wont change the subject. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Idioms About NumbersHang, Hung, Hangedâ€Å"Least,† â€Å"Less,† â€Å"More,† and â€Å"Most†