blasphemy
/ˈblæs.fə.mi/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.30 in modern English
21
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An act of irreverence or contempt toward a god or toward something considered sacred; an impious act, utterance, view, etc.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
An act of irreverence towards anything considered inviolable; the act of disregarding a convention.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "That imam said that drawing the prophet Muhammad was a form of blasphemy."
- "Had God cancelled His everlasting Covenant with Israel? The mere thought was blasphemy! But what did God's silence and the present dark cloud mean?"
- "Look, I don't think it ought to be blasphemy, just saying "Jehovah"."
- "Shepard: What happened to those other Alliance officers? The ones who came before me? Major Kyle: They wanted to take me away from here! They wanted me to abandon this place. Turn my back on my family. They spoke blasphemy! Major Kyle: I did what I could to make their end quick and painless. I had no other choice. It was necessary to protect my children. Only I can keep them safe."
- "The fundamentalists in that religion hold that such views are blasphemy and that religion is above criticism."
- "Some historical information is given on the Panormo family of guitar makers and a whole chapter is called, "Maccaferri's 'Monstrosity'," the name given Julian's Maccaferri guitar due to the blasphemy of its having more than six strings, […]"
Etymology
From Middle English blasfemie, from Old French blasfemie, from Ecclesiastical Latin blasphēmia, from Ancient Greek βλασφημία (blasphēmía, “profanity”), from βλασφημέω (blasphēméō, “to slander”). Displaced native Old English tāl.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Usage
Subject
Wiktionary places this term in Religion.