monotheism

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monotheism

/ˌmɑnoʊ̯ˈθiɪzm̩/

Where it comes from

A learned 17th-century coinage, mono- + theism, from (μονός (monós, “one”)) and (θεός (theós, “god, deity”) + -ισμός (-ismós)) The term parallels the earlier polytheism, atheism (the simplex theism being slightly later).

The term was coined by Henry More, ca. 1660, in explicit juxtaposition with both atheism and polytheism. It was redefined through etymological fallacy by Daniel Webster ca. 1828.

noun monotheisms · mono-theism

countable, obsolete, uncountable Belief in the One True God, defined by More as personal, immaterial and trinitarian.
countable, uncountable The belief in a single deity (one god or goddess); especially within an organized religion.
countable, uncountable The belief that God is one person (Judaism, Unitarian Christianity, Islam), not three persons (Trinitarian Christianity, Hinduism)

Translations

Every language

noun belief in one God

Español	monoteísmo
한국어	일신교 ilsin'gyo, 일신론 ilsinnon
日本語	一神教 isshinkyō
中文	一神教 yīshénjiào, 一神論 /一神论 yīshénlùn
हिन्दी	एकेश्वरवाद ekeśvarvād
Português	monoteísmo
Français	monothéisme
Deutsch	Monotheismus
Ελληνικά	μονοθεϊσμός monotheïsmós
Română	monoteism
Русский	монотеи́зм monotɛízm, единобо́жие jedinobóžije
العربية	تَوْحِيد tawḥīd
עברית	מוֹנוֹתֵאִיזְם monote'izm

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MLA

"monotheism." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/monotheism. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

APA

monotheism. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 7, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/monotheism

Chicago

"monotheism." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 7, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/monotheism.

BibTeX

@misc{monotheism_2026,
  title = {monotheism},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/monotheism},
  urldate = {2026-11-07}
}