Meanings
plural atheisms
- A non-belief in deities.
- uncountableusuallystrictlyBelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs).
Near-synonyms: antireligiousness, irreligion, irreligiousness
1 more example
For atheism to be rationally justified it is only necessary that it be more probable than not or at least more probable than theism. Certainty is no more required in the case of atheism than it is in the case of scientific theories.
2002, Michael Martin, “Should atheists be agnostics?”, in Julian Baggini, editor, The Philosophers' Magazine, number 19, →ISSN, archived from the original on 20 Dec 2002, page 18Synonyms: ;, Epicureanism, antireligiousness, irreligion, irreligiousness · Antonyms: theism, religion
- broadlyuncountableusuallyA lack of belief in deities, or a belief that there is insufficient evidence to believe in a god.
Near-synonyms: irreligion, irreligiousness, nonreligion, nonreligiousness
2 more examples
The theory of Secularism is a form, not of dogmatic, but of skeptical, Atheism; it is dogmatic only in denying the sufficiency of the evidence for the being and perfections of God. It does not deny, it only does not believe, His existence.
1857, James Buchanan, Modern Atheism: under its forms of Pantheism, Materialism, Secularism, Development, and Natural Laws, Boston: Gould and Lincoln, page 365...but Atheism per se simply means, not denial, but rejection, in the sense of not accepting the Theistic theory of the universe which Mr. Lee has put forward tonight.
1896, George William Foote with W. T. Lee, “First Night”, in Theism or Athiesm: Which is the more reasonable?, London: R. Forder, page 17Synonyms: ;, Epicureanism, irreligion, irreligiousness, nonreligion, nonreligiousness · Antonyms: theism, religion
- uncountableusuallyvery looselyAbsence of belief that any deities exist (including absence of the concept of deities).
What can parents do, and mothers more especially, […] with regard to the atheism that is natural to all the children of men?
1829, John Wesley, Sermons, on Several Occasions, 10th edition, volume 2, page 3731 more example
Atheism, in its basic form, is not a belief; it is the absence of belief. An atheist is not primarily a person who believes that a god does not exist; rather, he does not believe in the existence of a god.
1979, George H. Smith, Atheism: The Case Against God, Buffalo, New York: Prometheus, →ISBN, →LCCN, LCC BL2747.3.S6 1979, page 7Synonyms: ;, Epicureanism · Antonyms: theism, religion
- uncountableusuallyNeglect of one's obligations to God; behavior incongruent with belief in God (regardless of belief in the strict sense).
Synonyms: godlessness
- historicalrareuncountableusuallyAbsence of belief in a particular deity, pantheon, or religious doctrine (notwithstanding belief in other deities).
Sacrificial religion becomes redundant – which is why Christianity did indeed have a reputation in the ancient world for atheism: it rejected the key duty humans are thought to owe to the gods, namely sacrifice.
2010, Ross Thompson, Buddhist Christianity: A Passionate Openness, O-Books, →ISBN, page 2601 more example
Domitilla, Flavia, niece of the emperor Domitian (81-96). She and her husband, Flavius Clemens (consul in 95 and cousin of Domitian), were probably Christians; charged with atheism and adoption of Jewish ways, they were punished (95) with death (Clemens) and exile (Domitilla).
1995, Richard P. McBrien, editor, The HarperCollins Encyclopedia of Catholicism, HarperCollins, →ISBN, keyword Domitilla, Flavia, page 431 - proscribedsometimesuncountableusuallyA rejection of all religions, even non-theistic ones.
Another reason why the transition between Buddhism and atheism seemed so easy, was my personal discomfort with the theory of reincarnation.
2016 December 13, Luke C. Hsieh, Unicorn, You Taught Me How to Fly, Lulu Press, Inc, →ISBN2 more examples
Some worldviews are based in a belief in God; others are not. Buddhism, Taoism, atheism, Marxism, and existentialism are examples of worldviews that are nontheistic.
2009 June 2, Ed Gungor, What Bothers Me Most about Christianity: Honest Reflections from an Open-Minded Christ Follower, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 13Buddhism and atheism do agree on the view that there is no God. But Buddhism and atheist materialism totally disagree on the points such as “What is life?”, “Is there any Super natural?” etc.
2013 December 16, Yalith Wijesurendra, Buddhist Answers: For the Critical Questions: A bridge from religion to science and reason, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN, page 254
Synonyms & antonyms
nounBelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs).
nounA lack of belief in deities, or a belief that there is insufficient evidence to believe in a god.
nounAbsence of belief that any deities exist (including absence of the concept of deities).
nounNeglect of one's obligations to God; behavior incongruent with belief in God (regardless of belief in the strict sense).
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekἄθεος“godless”
- Middle Frenchathéisme
- Englishatheism
16th century Middle French athéisme, from athée (“atheist”), a loan from Ancient Greek ἄθεος (átheos, “godless”, from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + θεός (theós, “deity, god”)). First English attestation dates to 1587 (OED).
More words from Middle French, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans ateïsme
- ateïsmelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Ancient Greek ἀθεότης
- ἀθεότης (atheótēs)belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
Arabic إِلْحَاد, زَنْدَقَة
- إِلْحَاد (ʔilḥād)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- زَنْدَقَة (zandaqa)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Basque ateismo
- ateismolack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Bengali নাস্তিক্যবাদ
- নাস্তিক্যবাদ (nastikkobad)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Bulgarian атеи́зъм, безбо́жие
- атеи́зъм (ateízăm)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- безбо́жие (bezbóžie)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Catalan ateisme, ateisme
- ateismebelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- ateismelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Chinese Cantonese 無神論 /无神论
- 無神論 /无神论 (mou⁴ san⁴ leon⁶)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Chinese Mandarin 無神論 /无神论
- 無神論 /无神论 (wúshénlùn)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Czech ateismus
- ateismuslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Danish ateisme
- ateismelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Dutch atheïsme
- atheïsmelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Esperanto ateismo
- ateismolack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Estonian ateism
- ateismlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Finnish ateismi
- ateismilack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
French athéisme, athéisme
- athéismebelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- athéismelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
German Atheismus, Gottesleugnung
- Atheismusbelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- Gottesleugnungbelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- Atheismuslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- Gottlosigkeitlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Greek αθεΐα, αθεϊσμός
- αθεΐα (atheḯa)belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- αθεϊσμός (atheïsmós)belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- αθεΐα (atheḯa)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- αθεϊσμός (atheïsmós)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Hawaiian hōʻole akua
- hōʻole akualack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Hebrew אַתֶּאִיְזם
- אַתֶּאִיְזם (ate'ízm)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Hindi नास्तिकता
- नास्तिकता (nāstiktā)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Hungarian ateizmus
- ateizmuslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Icelandic trúleysi, guðleysi
- trúleysilack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- guðleysilack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Indonesian ateisme, ateisme
- ateismebelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- ateismelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Irish aindiachas
- aindiachaslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Italian ateismo
- ateismolack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Japanese 無神論
- 無神論 (mushinron)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Korean 무신론
- 무신론 (musillon)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Latin atheismus
- atheismuslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Latvian ateisms
- ateismslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Lithuanian ateizmas
- ateizmaslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Malay ateisme, ateisme
- ateismebelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- ateismelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Māori whakapono atuakore
- whakapono atuakorebelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
Norwegian Bokmål ateisme
- ateismelack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Persian بیخدایی
- بیخدایی (bi-xodâyi)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Polish ateizm, ateizm
- ateizmbelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- ateizmrejection of all religions, even non-theistic ones
- ateizmlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- bezbożnośćlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- ateizmabsence of belief in deities
Portuguese ateísmo, ateísmo
- ateísmobelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- ateísmolack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Romanian ateism
- ateismlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Russian атеи́зм, безбо́жие
- атеи́зм (atɛízm)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- безбо́жие (bezbóžije)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Scottish Gaelic dhiadhaireachd, dia-àicheadh
- dhiadhaireachdlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- dia-àicheadhlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Slovak ateizmus
- ateizmuslack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Spanish ateísmo
- ateísmolack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Swedish ateism, ateism
- ateismbelief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- ateismlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Tagalog ateismo
- ateismolack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Tamil இறைமறுப்பு, நாத்திகம்
- இறைமறுப்பு (iṟaimaṟuppu)belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- நாத்திகம் (nāttikam)belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)
- இறைமறுப்பு (iṟaimaṟuppu)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Thai อเทวนิยม
- อเทวนิยม (à-tee-wá-ní-yom)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Turkish ateizm, tanrıtanımazcılık
- ateizmlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- tanrıtanımazcılıklack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- dinsizliklack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- küfürlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Ukrainian атеї́зм, безбо́жність
- атеї́зм (atejízm)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- безбо́жність (bezbóžnistʹ)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- безбо́жжя (bezbóžžja)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Urdu دَہْرِیَّت
- دَہْرِیَّت (daihriyyat)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Vietnamese chủ nghĩa vô thần, thuyết vô thần
- chủ nghĩa vô thầnlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- thuyết vô thầnlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
- vô thần luậnlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Welsh anffyddiaeth
- anffyddiaethlack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Yiddish אַטעיִזם
- אַטעיִזם (ateizm)lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
atheism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/atheism
“atheism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/atheism. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “atheism,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/atheism.
Source: atheism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.