blasphemy

American  

[blas-fuh-mee] / ˈblæs fə mi /

noun

blasphemies plural

1. impious utterance or action concerning God or sacred things.

   Synonyms:

   impiety, sacrilege, profanity

2. Judaism.

   1. an act of cursing or reviling God.

   2. pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH) in the original, now forbidden manner instead of using a substitute pronunciation such as Adonai.

3. Theology. the crime of assuming to oneself the rights or qualities of God.

4. irreverent behavior toward anything held sacred, priceless, etc..

   He uttered blasphemies against life itself.

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blasphemy British  

/ ˈblæsfɪmɪ /

noun

1. blasphemous behaviour or language

2. Also called: blasphemous libel.  law the crime committed if a person insults, offends, or vilifies the deity, Christ, or the Christian religion

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonblasphemy
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• blasphemies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of blasphemy

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English blasphemie, from Late Latin blasphēmia, from Greek, equivalent to blasphem(ous) + -y ³

Explanation

Saying offensive things about God or religion is blasphemy. Blasphemy can be used for offensive ideas in other areas too. If you're saying something bad about a god, or taking the Lord's name in vain, or questioning a religious institution in any way, you could be accused of blasphemy — insulting something sacred. You can use this word in a lot of other ways too. At a meeting of conservatives, a liberal idea could be considered blasphemy (and vice versa). You might even jokingly cry "Blasphemy!" if a friend said your favorite ice cream flavor stinks.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

blasphemy blasphemies

We’ve got two big threads this week: creeps in the House of Representatives and blasphemy.

From Slate ● Apr. 18, 2026

She also represented those accused of blasphemy -- an incendiary charge in Pakistan -- as well as Afghans who face crackdowns by the authorities.

From Barron's ● Jan. 24, 2026

There cannot be, since blasphemy depends on the acknowledgment of the sacred.

From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2025

Both Denmark and Sweden have abolished blasphemy laws.

From BBC ● Dec. 7, 2023

Subversion, sedition, blasphemy, heresy, all rolled into one.

From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood

Saban had asked in 2012, complaining about the hurry-up revolution even before he’d beheld the extent of Malzahn’s blasphemies.

From Slate ● Jan. 12, 2021

He spoke blasphemies other chefs recognized as hard-won truths.

From New York Times ● Apr. 2, 2015

As vividly portrayed by the veteran mezzo-soprano Felicity Palmer, the agonies and blasphemies of the prioress were painful and even shocking to witness.

From Seattle Times ● May 6, 2013

What they are seeing is a two-ton, eight-cylinder behemoth built for an age when 50-m.p.h. speed limits, gasless Sundays and talk of rationing would have seemed like blasphemies.

From Time Magazine Archive

And when his niece began to bewail his stubbornness and called down the wrath of heaven upon all tales of chivalry, he threatened to chastise her for uttering such blasphemies.

From The Story of Don Quixote by Choate, Florence

Related Words

• desecration
• heresy