atheist

[ey-thee-ist]

noun

1. a person who does not believe in the existence of a supreme being or beings.

2. a person who believes that there is no supreme being or beings.

atheist

/ ˈeɪθɪˌɪst /

noun

1. a person who does not believe in God or gods

adjective

1. of or relating to atheists or atheism

Other Word Forms

• antiatheist noun
• proatheist noun
• atheistic adjective
• atheistically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of atheist¹

First recorded in 1565–75; from Greek áthe(os) “godless” + -ist; a- ⁶ ( def. ), theo-

Synonym Study

See agnostic.

Example Sentences

Mr. Persico mentions that Martin Luther hated Jews and persecuted heretics, and he acknowledges that Locke excluded Catholics and atheists from toleration.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

As in the foxhole, there are no atheists in the country.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Despite being ruled by the atheist Chinese Communist Party, China has a sizeable Christian population.

Read more on BBC

Officially, the Communist Party is atheist, with the only legal churches in China being those sanctioned by the state.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Together, the characters represent the spectrum of religious attitudes — from atheist to convert, selectively to very observant — but all are steeped in the culture.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• agnostic 
• doubting Thomas 
• skeptic 
• unbeliever 

When To Use

What does atheist mean?

An atheist is a person who does not believe in the existence of a supreme being or deity. In other words, an atheist is a person who does not believe in the existence of God or of any gods.The belief or doctrine that denies the existence of gods or supreme beings is atheism. Atheist can also be used as an adjective to describe such beliefs or things involving such beliefs. The adjective atheistic can be used in the same way.The word atheist means something different from the word agnostic, which refers to a person who believes it is impossible to know whether or not a supreme being exists. When asked if God or gods exist, an atheist would answer “No,” while an agnostic would answer “It is impossible to know.”Example: Being an atheist doesn’t mean I think God is bad—it means that I think God doesn’t exist.