Laodicean

[ley-od-uh-see-uh n, ley-uh-duh-]

adjective

lukewarm or indifferent, especially in religion, as were the early Christians of Laodicea.

noun

a person who is lukewarm or indifferent, especially in religion.

Origin of Laodicean

First recorded in 1605–15; Laodice(a) + -an

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

Examples from the Web for laodicean

They show an amount and degree of interest in ideas of the kind which are surprising to a Laodicean like me.
Robert Elsmere|Mrs. Humphry Ward
He is the Laodicean, neither cold nor hot, whom decent people consider bad company.
Short Studies on Great Subjects|James Anthony Froude
The Laodicean attitude of a shrewd publisher hurt her less than at first.
The Higher Court|Mary Stewart Daggett
Verily we are in the last--the Laodicean stage--that of the Lukewarm Church.
The Chocolate Soldier|C. T. Studd

Naturally the public could not swallow it, for even God cannot digest a Laodicean.
Essays on Russian Novelists|William Lyon Phelps

British Dictionary definitions for laodicean

laodicean

adjective

lukewarm and indifferent, esp in religious matters

noun

a person having a lukewarm attitude towards religious matters

Word Origin for laodicean

C17: referring to the early Christians of Laodicea (Revelation 3:14–16)

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 laodicean

Laodicean

"lukewarm in religion," 1560s, from Laodicea, Syrian city (modern Latakia) whose early Christians were chastised in the Bible for indifference to their religion [Rev. iii:14-16]. The city is said to be named for the 3c B.C.E. Syrian queen Laodice, wife of Antiochus II.