worldly
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to this world as contrasted with heaven, spiritual life, etc.; earthly; mundane.
- Synonyms:
- temporal
- Antonyms:
- spiritual
-
experienced; knowing; sophisticated.
the benefits of his worldly wisdom.
- Synonyms:
- cosmopolitan, urbane
-
devoted to, directed toward, or connected with the affairs, interests, or pleasures of this world.
-
of or relating to the people or laity; secular; neither ecclesiastical nor religious.
-
Obsolete. of, relating to, or existing on earth.
adverb
adjective
-
not spiritual; mundane or temporal
-
Also: worldly-minded. absorbed in or concerned with material things or matters that are immediately relevant
-
Also: worldly-wise. versed in the ways of the world; sophisticated
-
archaic existing on or relating to the earth
-
obsolete secular; lay
adverb
Synonym Usage
See earthly.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of worldly
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English wor(u)ldlīc. See world, -ly
Explanation
You can use the adjective worldly to describe people who have knowledge of many topics or experience in many areas. You don't have to travel the globe to be worldly; reading and talking about many things with knowledge and enthusiasm is worldly too. While worldly often describes individuals who are sophisticated and well-rounded in education, travel, and experiences, it's also used for people who are rooted in the world or focused on physical and material things around them, rather than on spiritual matters. An old expression in religion is "She was too heavenly minded for worldly good," and it describes those who think about the spiritual or supernatural so much that they aren't worldly enough to get anything done.
Vocabulary lists containing worldly
Excerpt from "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"
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Americanized
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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.
See Examples For:
Besides the city's highbrow cultural offerings, its status as a centre of congress and diplomacy also helps attract a wealthy and worldly clientele.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Much like the toilet which kept playing up during the Artemis II mission, this research reminds us even astronauts operating in other worldly conditions are still human.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
As in “The Country of the Pointed Firs,” the novel is about the arrival of a worldly interloper to a remote, pastoral community.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
But we also know him as Ziggy Stardust, the alien rock star, or the elegant, worldly Thin White Duke.
From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2026
“He regarded me as potentially a very good physicist. . . But in a certain sense, not worldly, not experienced, and not very sensible.”
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Deep learning -- machine learning's wiser and worldlier relative -- can digest larger quantities of information to make more nuanced decisions.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 4, 2024
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll talked at length on Tuesday about how Lynch, at 33, seems like a much worldlier, wiser, and mature person than in his previous incarnation.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 24, 2019
It’s the point of lots of teen shows, and lots of the actual lives of teens, this desire to be older, freer, smarter, worldlier.
From New York Times ● Oct. 17, 2019
Her best biographer, Richard B. Sewall, unpicked this legend in his 1974 study, from which a worldlier and more socialized figure emerged.
From The New Yorker ● Apr. 14, 2017
Two of the girls from London and two from The Nurseries made up the bevy of bridesmaids who were as bright and fair as though the bride had come from some worldlier stock.
From John Caldigate by Trollope, Anthony
Tell her that if you’re right about that, at the time you were dealing with shame and fear, and felt your older sister was the worldliest person you could turn to.
From Slate ● May 2, 2021
And there’s no denying that when she sings, from a wildly diverse song list, she’s as polished and inventive as the worldliest cabaret artist.
From New York Times ● Apr. 30, 2010
A bawdy belly laugh at Nero's Rome delivered by the worldliest Roman of them all and translated with unexpurgated wit by Classicist William Arrowsmith.
From Time Magazine Archive
A belly laugh at Nero's Rome delivered by the worldliest Roman of them all.
From Time Magazine Archive
"None of us, my dear young lady," cried he, "not the worldliest nor the wisest of us, can ever tell when a particular acquirement will be the key-stone of our future fortune."
From One Of Them by Lever, Charles James
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.
