heathen

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Informal · Humorous

n. a person who has no manners or does not appreciate art and culture.

n. an uncultured or uncivilized person. Used as a derogatory label for someone perceived as lacking social refinement.

“My brother is a total heathen because he eats pizza with a spoon.”

“The critics dismissed the new audience as a pack of heathens who were more interested in their phones than the performance.”

C2 · Proficiency Literary

adj. describing someone or something that is not religious or lacks culture.

adj. pertaining to people or customs that do not follow a major monotheistic religion; by extension, uncultured or barbaric.

“The explorers were surprised by the heathen customs of the remote tribe.”

“The missionary spent years attempting to convert the local population from their heathen traditions to his own faith.”

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Religion Technical

n. a person who follows a modern version of the old Germanic or Norse religions.

n. an adherent of Heathenry, a contemporary neopagan movement based on the historical religious beliefs of Germanic peoples.

“He identifies as a heathen and studies ancient Norse mythology.”

“The local Heathen community gathered to celebrate the winter solstice according to reconstructed Germanic rites.”