blasphemy

UK: /ˈblæsfəmi/ US: /ˈblæsfəmi/ ,(blas′fə mē)

Inflections of 'blasphemy' (n): npl: blasphemies

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

blas•phe•my /ˈblæsfəmi/   n., pl. -mies. 

1. (an act of) speaking or acting irreverently or disrespectfully concerning God or sacred things:
   [uncountable] shouted that what she had just said was blasphemy.
   [countable] to be punished for many blasphemies.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

blas•phe•my  (blas′fə mē), n., pl. -mies. 

1. impious utterance or action concerning God or sacred things.
2. Judaism
   • an act of cursing or reviling God.
   • pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton (yhvh) in the original, now forbidden manner instead of using a substitute pronunciation such as Adonai.
3. [Theol.] the crime of assuming to oneself the rights or qualities of God.
4. irreverent behavior toward anything held sacred, priceless, etc.:
   He uttered blasphemies against life itself.

• Greek. See blasphemous, -y³
• Late Latin blasphēmia
• Middle English blasphemie 1175–1225

Synonyms

• 1. profanity, cursing, swearing; sacrilege, impiety.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

blasphemy / ˈblæsfɪmɪ/ noun ( -mies)

1. blasphemous behaviour or language
2. Also called (in some countries): blasphemous libel the crime committed if a person insults, offends, or vilifies God or something sacred