blaspheme

[blas-feem, blas-feem]

verb (used with object), blas·phemed, blas·phem·ing.

to speak impiously or irreverently of (God or sacred things).

to speak evil of; slander; abuse.

verb (used without object), blas·phemed, blas·phem·ing.

to speak irreverently of God or sacred things; utter impieties.

Origin of blaspheme

1300–50; Middle English (< Anglo-French) < Late Latin blasphēmāre < Greek blasphēmeîn to speak profanely, derivative of blásphēmos blasphemous

Related formsblas·phem·er

[blas-fee-mer, blas-fee-, -fuh-] /blæsˈfi mər, ˈblæs fi-, -fə-/, nounun·blas·phemed, adjective

Synonym study

1. See curse.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for blasphemer

Historical Examples of blasphemer

It is in fact hard to say why he should have been a blasphemer.
The Civilisation of the Renaissance in Italy
Jacob Burckhardt
There was a blow and the blasphemer reeled and fell against the wall.
Mother Earth, Vol. 1 No. 4, June 1906
Various
He who questions it would be a blasphemer were he not a fool.
Burlesques
William Makepeace Thackeray
Any man who reads Nietzsche or quotes Nietzsche is a blasphemer.
Theft
Jack London
The blasphemer has no right to boast over the hypocrite, and the hypocrite has no right to boast over the blasphemer.
The Parables of Our Lord
William Arnot

British Dictionary definitions for blasphemer

blaspheme

verb

(tr) to show contempt or disrespect for (God, a divine being, or sacred things), esp in speech

(intr) to utter profanities, curses, or impious expressions

Derived Formsblasphemer, noun

Word Origin for blaspheme

C14: from Late Latin blasphēmāre, from Greek blasphēmein from blasphēmos blasphemous

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for blasphemer

blaspheme

mid-14c., from Old French blasfemer "to blaspheme" (14c., Modern French blasphémer), from Church Latin blasphemare (also in Late Latin "revile, reproach"), from Greek blasphemein "to speak lightly or amiss of sacred things, to slander," from blasphemos "evil-speaking" (see blasphemy). A reintroduction after the original word had been worn down and sense-shifted to blame. Related: Blasphemed; blaspheming.