1
general::
relating to religion
religious
relating to religion:
• the country's religious leaders • the importance of religious freedom
spiritual
relating to matters of the human spirit, rather than the physical world:
• The Dalai Lamai is the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet. • We tend to ignore people's spriritual needs, and focus too much on material things. • spiritual values
holy
[ usually before noun ] connected with God and religion, and therefore treated in a special way – used especially in the following phrases:
• the Holy Bible • the holy city of Mecca • a Hindu holy man • They believe they are fighting a holy war. • The priest puts some holy water on the child's head.
sacred
connected with God and religion, and therefore treated in a special way – used especially in the following phrases:
• This place is sacred to both Jews and Muslims. • In India, cows are considered sacred . • the Hindu sacred texts • sacred music • a sacred ritual
theological
relating to the study of religion or to religious beliefs:
• a theological debate • theological training
secular
not relating to religion or controlled by a religious authority:
• secular education • secular matters • In the UK we live in a much more secular society.
believing in a religion
religious
believing strongly in a religion and obeying its rules:
• My father was a very religious man. • Are you religious?
devout
having a very strong belief in a religion:
• a devout Catholic
orthodox
believing in the traditional beliefs, laws, and practices of a religion:
• orthodox Jews
not believing in God or religion
atheist
noun , adjective someone who does not believe that God exists:
• She says she is an atheist. • atheist propaganda
agnostic
noun , adjective someone who believes that people cannot know whether God exists or not:
• I think I'd describe myself as an agnostic. • a group of prominent agnostic scientists
Longman-Thesaurus
2
general::
adj. VERBS be | become ADV. deeply, devoutly, highly, very a deeply religious person | strictly He distanced himself from the strictly religious aspects of the music. | quite | essentially, fundamentally Yoga is essentially religious and not just physical. | specifically the specifically religious content of the programme
Oxford Collocations Dictionary