heathen

UK: /ˈhiːðən/ US: /ˈhiðən/ ,(hē′ᵺən)

Inflections of 'heathen' (n):

heathens

npl (All usages)

heathen

npl (Can be used as a collective plural, usually with the definite article—e.g. "Missionaries considered it their duty to convert the heathen.")

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

hea•then /ˈhiðən/   n., pl. -thens, -then, adj. 
n. [countable]

1. Religion an individual of a people that do not acknowledge the God of the Bible.
2. an uncultured or uncivilized person.

adj. 

3. Religion of or relating to heathens;
   pagan.
4. uncultured or uncivilized.

hea•then•dom, n. [uncountable]
hea•then•ish, adj. 
hea•then•ism, n. [uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

hea•then  (hē′ᵺən), n., pl. -thens, -then, adj. 
n. 

1. an unconverted individual of a people that do not acknowledge the God of the Bible;
   a person who is neither a Jew, Christian, nor Muslim;
   pagan.
2. an irreligious, uncultured, or uncivilized person.

adj. 

3. of or pertaining to heathens;
   pagan.
4. irreligious, uncultured, or uncivilized.

• bef. 900; Middle English hethen, Old English hǣthen, akin to German Heide, heidnisch (adjective, adjectival), Old Norse heithingi (noun, nominal), heithinn (adjective, adjectival), Gothic haithno (noun, nominal); perh. akin to heath

hea′then•dom, n. 
hea′then•hood′, n. 
hea′then•ness, n. 
hea′then•ship′, n. 
Synonyms

• 3. heathenish, barbarous.
  Heathen, pagan are both applied to peoples who are not Christian, Jewish, or Muslim.
  Heathen is often distinctively applied to unenlightened or barbaric idolaters, esp. to primitive or ancient tribes:
  heathen rites, idols.
  Pagan, though applied to any of the peoples not worshiping according to the three religions mentioned above, is most frequently used in speaking of the ancient Greeks and Romans:
  a pagan poem; a pagan civilization.
• 4. philistine; savage.

Antonyms

• 4. sophisticated, urbane, cultured.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

heathen / ˈhiːðən/ noun ( -thens, -then)

1. a person who does not acknowledge the God of Christianity, Judaism, or Islam; pagan
2. an uncivilized or barbaric person

adjective

1. irreligious; pagan
2. unenlightened; uncivilized; barbaric
3. of or relating to heathen peoples or their religious, moral, and other customs, practices, and beliefs

Etymology: Old English hǣthen; related to Old Norse heithinn, Old Frisian hēthin, Old High German heidan

ˈheathenism, ˈheathenry noun