religious

[ri-lij-uhs]

See more synonyms for religious on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of, relating to, or concerned with religion: a religious holiday.
imbued with or exhibiting religion; pious; devout; godly: a religious man.
scrupulously faithful; conscientious: religious care.

pertaining to or connected with a monastic or religious order.
appropriate to religion or to sacred rites or observances.

noun, plural re·li·gious.

a member of a religious order, congregation, etc.; a monk, friar, or nun.
the religious, devout or religious persons: Each year, thousands of the religious make pilgrimages to the shrine.

Origin of religious

1175–1225; Middle English (< Old French) < Latin religiōsus, equivalent to religi(ō) religion + -ōsus -ous

Related formsre·li·gious·ly, adverbre·li·gious·ness, nounan·ti·re·li·gious, adjectivean·ti·re·li·gious·ly, adverbnon·re·li·gious, adjectivenon·re·li·gious·ly, adverbnon·re·li·gious·ness, nouno·ver·re·li·gious, adjectiveo·ver·re·li·gious·ly, adverbpre·re·li·gious, adjectivepseu·do·re·li·gious, adjectivepseu·do·re·li·gious·ly, adverbqua·si-re·li·gious, adjectivequa·si-re·li·gious·ly, adverbul·tra·re·li·gious, adjectiveul·tra·re·li·gious·ly, adverbul·tra·re·li·gious·ness, noun

Can be confusedreligious sacrilegious sacrosanct

Synonyms for religious

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com

2. reverent. Religious, devout, pious indicate a spirit of reverence toward God. Religious is a general word, applying to whatever pertains to faith or worship: a religious ceremony. Devout indicates a fervent spirit, usually genuine and often independent of outward observances: a deeply devout though unorthodox church member. Pious implies constant attention to, and extreme conformity with, outward observances. It can also suggest sham or hypocrisy: a pious hypocrite. 3. devoted, unswerving, meticulous.

Antonyms for religious

2. impious.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for religiously

routinely, systematically, commonly, faithfully, repeatedly, usually, frequently, automatically, religiously, customarily, mechanically, ordinarily, habitually, conventionally, punctually, recurrently, tirelessly, mystically, piously

Examples from the Web for religiously

Contemporary Examples of religiously

Congress is now 92 percent Christian, resembling more to a papal enclave than our religiously diverse nation.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Congress
Dean Obeidallah
January 8, 2015
Of course, the study makes a point of separating the religiously conservative from the politically conservative.
Christian Right-Wingers Love Porn: New Studies Suggest the Bible Belt Has A Kinky Side
Aurora Snow
October 11, 2014
It gets even more complicated on “Level 3,” religiously affiliated organizations.
Why Progressives Just Woke Up and Killed ENDA
Jay Michaelson
July 9, 2014
I still have family friends who watch My Cousin Vinny religiously.
My Lunch with Marisa Tomei: The Actress on ‘The Realistic Joneses,’ ‘Girls,’ and de Blasio’s NYC
Marlow Stern
April 23, 2014
I watched Laguna Beach, and both of its subsidiaries—The Hills and The City—religiously.
Living Like ‘The Hills’: Kristin Cavallari, Lauren Conrad, and the Phenomenon of Our Current ‘Tastemakers’
Erin Cunningham
March 27, 2014

Historical Examples of religiously

But I've known every bad place in it, and I've religiously put in your "Come, come, child!"
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
She deserves a social culture, she should be religiously venerated.
Fruitfulness
Emile Zola
These did not appeal to me; I was not religiously inclined just then.
Kent Knowles: Quahaug
Joseph C. Lincoln
That is to say religiously married, which is all the Church thinks necessary.
The Eternal City
Hall Caine
Again we are undone, if the French alliance is not religiously observed.
Patrick Henry
Moses Coit Tyler

British Dictionary definitions for religiously

religious

adjective

of, relating to, or concerned with religion
1. pious; devout; godly
2. (as collective noun; preceded by the)the religious
appropriate to or in accordance with the principles of a religion
scrupulous, exact, or conscientious
Christianity of or relating to a way of life dedicated to religion by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and defined by a monastic rule

noun

Christianity a member of an order or congregation living by such a rule; a monk, friar, or nun

Derived Formsreligiously, adverbreligiousness, noun

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 religiously

adv.

late 14c., "in a religous manner," from religious + -ly (2). Transferred sense of "strictly, scrupulously" attested by 1570s.

religious

adj.

c.1200, "devout, pious, imbued with or expressive of religious devotion," from Anglo-French religius, Old French religious (12c., Modern French religieux) and directly from Latin religiosus, from religio (see religion). Meaning "pertaining to religion" is from 1530s. Transferred sense of "scrupulous, exact" is recorded from 1590s. Related: Religiousness.