atheism

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

atheism

/ˈeɪ.θi.ɪ.zəm/

Where it comes from

16th century Middle French athéisme, from athée (“atheist”), a loan from Ancient Greek ἄθεος (átheos, “godless”, from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + θεός (theós, “deity, god”)).

First English attestation dates to 1587 (OED).

noun atheisms

uncountable, usually Belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs). Near-synonyms: antireligiousness, irreligion, irreligiousness
Similar: ;, Epicureanism, antireligiousness, irreligion, irreligiousness · Opposite: theism, religion
broadly, uncountable, usually A lack of belief in deities, or a belief that there is insufficient evidence to believe in a god. Near-synonyms: irreligion, irreligiousness, nonreligion, nonreligiousness
Similar: ;, Epicureanism, irreligion, irreligiousness, nonreligion, nonreligiousness · Opposite: theism, religion
uncountable, usually Absence of belief that any deities exist (including absence of the concept of deities). What can parents do, and mothers more especially, […] with regard to the atheism that is natural to all the children of men?
Similar: ;, Epicureanism · Opposite: theism, religion
uncountable, usually, from a religious perspective Neglect of one's obligations to God; behavior incongruent with belief in God (regardless of belief in the strict sense).
Similar: godlessness
historical, rare, uncountable, usually Absence of belief in a particular deity, pantheon, or religious doctrine (notwithstanding belief in other deities). Domitilla, Flavia, niece of the emperor Domitian (81-96). She and her husband, Flavius Clemens (consul in 95 and cousin of Domitian), were probably Christians; charged with atheism and adoption of Jewish ways, they were punished (95) with death (Clemens) and exile (Domitilla).
proscribed, sometimes, uncountable, usually A rejection of all religions, even non-theistic ones. Some worldviews are based in a belief in God; others are not. Buddhism, Taoism, atheism, Marxism, and existentialism are examples of worldviews that are nontheistic.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: godlessness, atheist, atheistic, disbelief, postulatory, apostasy, blasphemy, nonbelief, irreligion, nontheism, unbelief, rationalism, freethought, materialism, skepticism, antitheism

Translations

Every language

noun lack of belief that any deities exist (with or without a belief that no deities exist)

Español	ateísmo
한국어	무신론 musillon
日本語	無神論 mushinron
中文	無神論 /无神论 wúshénlùn
हिन्दी	नास्तिकता nāstiktā
Português	ateísmo
Français	athéisme
Deutsch	Atheismus, Gottlosigkeit
Italiano	ateismo
Ελληνικά	αθεΐα atheḯa, αθεϊσμός atheïsmós
Română	ateism
Русский	атеи́зм atɛízm, безбо́жие bezbóžije
Tiếng Việt	chủ nghĩa vô thần, thuyết vô thần, vô thần luận
العربية	إِلْحَاد ʔilḥād, زَنْدَقَة zandaqa
עברית	אַתֶּאִיְזם ate'ízm

noun belief that no deities exist (sometimes including rejection of other religious beliefs)

Português	ateísmo
Français	athéisme
Deutsch	Atheismus, Gottesleugnung
Ελληνικά	αθεΐα atheḯa, αθεϊσμός atheïsmós

Talk about this word

Cite this

MLA

"atheism." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/atheism. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

atheism. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/atheism

Chicago

"atheism." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/atheism.

BibTeX

@misc{atheism_2026,
  title = {atheism},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/atheism},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}