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
Related Words
See earthly.
Other Word Forms
- preworldliness noun
- preworldly adjective
- superworldliness noun
- superworldly adjective
- worldliness noun
Etymology
Origin of worldly
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English wor(u)ldlīc. See world, -ly
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.
At the same time, interest in a more vague spirituality is on the rise, fueled by “wellness” influencers framing spirituality as a shortcut to worldly gains like money, fitness, and romance.
From Salon
By the late-19th century, “Grub Street” had become a generic term for ambitious, worldly—and mostly talentless—writers, everything the classicist Gissing abhorred.
We amplify 21st century worldly and spiritual conflict, not going gentle into that, or any, good night.
From Los Angeles Times
More than anything else, it offers further evidence that Musk is a lot dumber than he ought to be, given his immense worldly success.
From Salon
“The babies’ breathing,” he writes, “was impetuous, nervous, uneven, but the mothers’ slow worldly sighs, forceful and vaguely wise, got to me, straight to the heart.”
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.
