Holy Roller

American  

noun

Disparaging and Offensive.

1. a contemptuous term used to refer to a member of a Pentecostal sect.

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Holy Roller British  

noun

1. derogatory a member of a sect that expresses religious fervour in an ecstatic or frenzied way

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Other Word Forms

• Holy Rollerism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of Holy Roller

So called from the frenetic religiosity expressed during services

Example Sentences

Behind O’Reilly, the NFL executive vice president of club business and league events, was the Holy Roller, an iconic Ferris wheel just off the Las Vegas Strip.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 28, 2022

Fouts will never forget the Holy Roller, the controversial game-winning play by Ken Stabler and the Oakland Raiders on Sept. 10, 1978.

From Washington Times • Dec. 22, 2020

In what became known as the Holy Roller, he fumbled the ball forward toward Casper, who recovered it in the end zone for a game-winning touchdown against the San Diego Chargers in 1978.

From New York Times • Jul. 10, 2015

But the narcos’ reverence for a Holy Roller version of Robert Bly’s “Iron John” must have seemed just too weird to play.

From The New Yorker • Jun. 29, 2015

At first sight to the Yankee soldiers he resembled very much the members of the House of David or so-called "Holy Roller" sect in this country.

From The History of the American Expedition Fighting the Bolsheviki Campaigning in North Russia 1918-1919 by Jahns, Lewis E.