Infidel

Infidel
Infidel In"fi*del, n. One who does not believe in the prevailing religious faith; a heathen; a freethinker; -- used especially by Christians and Mohammedans. [1913 Webster +PJC]

Note: Infidel is used by English writers to translate the equivalent word used Mohammedans in speaking of Christians and other disbelievers in Mohammedanism.

Syn: {Infidel}, {Unbeliever}, {Freethinker}, {Deist}, {Atheist}, {Sceptic}, {Agnostic}.

Usage: An infidel, in common usage, is one who denies Christianity and the truth of the Scriptures. Some have endeavored to widen the sense of infidel so as to embrace atheism and every form of unbelief; but this use does not generally prevail. A freethinker is now only another name for an infidel. An unbeliever is not necessarily a disbeliever or infidel, because he may still be inquiring after evidence to satisfy his mind; the word, however, is more commonly used in the extreme sense. A deist believes in one God and a divine providence, but rejects revelation. An atheist denies the being of God. A sceptic is one whose faith in the credibility of evidence is weakened or destroyed, so that religion, to the same extent, has no practical hold on his mind. An agnostic remains in a state of suspended judgment, neither affirming nor denying the existence of a personal Deity. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • infidel — INFIDÉL, Ă, infideli, e, adj. 1. Care nu este fidel; nestatornic, necredincios în sentimente, care îşi calcă angajamentele faţă de cineva, nefidel; (despre soţi) care calcă credinţa conjugală. 2. Inexact, care nu exprimă adevărul, realitatea. –… …   Dicționar Român

  • Infidel — In fi*del, a. [L. infidelis; pref. in not + fidelis faithful, fr. fides faith: cf. F. infid[ e]le. See {Fidelity}.] Not holding the faith; applied by Christians to one who does not believe in the inspiration of the Scriptures, and the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • infidel — [in′fə del΄, in′fədəl] n. [ME < MFr infidèle < L infidelis, unfaithful (in LL(Ec), unbelieving) < in , IN 2 + fidelis: see FIDELITY] 1. a person who does not believe in a particular religion, esp. the prevailing religion; specif., a)… …   English World dictionary

  • infidel — index heretic Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • infidel — (del lat. «infidēlis»; ant.) adj. y n. Infiel …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • infidel — mid 15c. (adjective and noun), from M.Fr. infidèle, from L. infidelis unfaithful, not to be trusted, later unbelieving, from in not, opposite of (see IN (Cf. in ) (1)) + fidelis faithful (see FIDELITY (Cf. fidelity)). In 15c. a non Christian… …   Etymology dictionary

  • infidel — unbeliever, *atheist, freethinker, agnostic, deist …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • infidel — [n] nonbeliever agnostic, atheist, gentile, heathen, heretic, nonworshiper, pagan, unbeliever; concept 689 …   New thesaurus

  • infidel — ► NOUN chiefly archaic ▪ a person who has no religion or whose religion is not that of the majority. ORIGIN Latin infidelis, from in not + fidelis faithful …   English terms dictionary

  • Infidel — For other uses, see Infidel (disambiguation). Unbeliever redirects here. For the fictional character, see The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever. Part of a series on Christianity …   Wikipedia

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