pious

[ pahy-uhs ]

/ ˈpaɪ əs /

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See synonyms for: pious / piously / piousness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

having or showing a dutiful spirit of reverence for God or an earnest wish to fulfill religious obligations.

characterized by a hypocritical concern with virtue or religious devotion; sanctimonious.

practiced or used in the name of real or pretended religious motives, or for some ostensibly good object; falsely earnest or sincere: a pious deception.

of or relating to religious devotion; sacred rather than secular: pious literature.

having or showing appropriate respect or regard for parents or others.

OTHER WORDS FOR pious

1 devout, godly, reverent.

See synonyms for pious on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of pious

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin pius, akin to piāre “to propitiate”

synonym study for pious

1. See religious.

OTHER WORDS FROM pious

pi·ous·ly, adverbpi·ous·ness, nounpre·pi·ous, adjectivepre·pi·ous·ly, adverb

pseu·do·pi·ous, adjectivepseu·do·pi·ous·ly, adverbquasi-pious, adjectivequa·si-pi·ous·ly, adverbsem·i·pi·ous, adjectivesem·i·pi·ous·ly, adverbsem·i·pi·ous·ness, nounsu·per·pi·ous, adjectivesu·per·pi·ous·ly, adverbsu·per·pi·ous·ness, nounun·pi·ous, adjectiveun·pi·ous·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use pious in a sentence

In a typical sally, Nixon piously intoned, “I know what it means to be poor.”
Hey, Mitt, You Can Be Rich and Win the Election, Just Not Richie Rich|Robert Shrum|July 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST
As soon as any become vacant, I shall take care to provide for them as speedily as possible, as your Majesty so piously orders me.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XX, 1621-1624|Various
At the middle altar was the mandarin, piously engaged in prayer, while two stood beside him, fanning him with large fans.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
The festivals were more numerous in Rome than in Greece, and perhaps were more piously observed.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume I|John Lord

But at a period more piously illiterate, things of this shadowy nature were linked very closely to objects of a material kind.
A Cursory History of Swearing|Julian Sharman
At one side of the chancel arch there is a reading desk, which looks piously at a pulpit, made just like it, on the opposite side.
Our Churches and Chapels|Atticus

British Dictionary definitions for pious

pious

/ (ˈpaɪəs) /

adjective

having or expressing reverence for a god or gods; religious; devout

marked by reverence

marked by false reverence; sanctimonious

sacred; not secular

archaic having or expressing devotion for one's parents or others

Derived forms of pious

piously, adverbpiousness, noun

Word Origin for pious

C17: from Latin pius, related to piāre to expiate

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

pious

OTHER WORDS FOR pious

Origin of pious

synonym study for pious

OTHER WORDS FROM pious

Words related to pious

How to use pious in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pious

Derived forms of pious

Word Origin for pious