God-fearing
Americanadjective
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deeply respectful or fearful of God.
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(sometimes lowercase) deeply religious; pious; devout.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of God-fearing
First recorded in 1825–35
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And somewhere north of Richmond, Va., were those mysterious other people called Yankees—very unlike us God-fearing and patriotic Southerners, but Americans all the same.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
The pastor there, Caroline Atieno, remembers a "wonderful... God-fearing person".
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2024
The story follows Dawn O’Keefe, a God-fearing good girl — surrounded by shame-lobbing, not-so-good men — whose body has a sharp sense of justice.
From New York Times ● Mar. 27, 2024
It’s heartbreaking how he could only swing like a pendulum between being out and God-fearing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 30, 2023
“Nothing vulgar, mind you. They’re God-fearing folk in these parts.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
