infidel








noun

  1. Religion.
    1. a person who does not accept a particular faith, especially Christianity.
    2. (in Christian use) an unbeliever, especially a Muslim.
    3. (in Muslim use) a person who does not accept the Islamic faith; kafir(def 2).
  2. a person who has no religious faith; unbeliever.
  3. (loosely) a person who disbelieves or doubts a particular theory, belief, creed, etc.; skeptic.

adjective

  1. not accepting a particular faith, especially Christianity or Islam; heathen.
  2. without religious faith.
  3. due to or manifesting unbelief: infidel ideas.
  4. rejecting the Christian religion while accepting no other; not believing in the Bible or any Christian divine revelation.
  5. Also in·fi·del·ic [in-fi-del-ik] /ˌɪn fɪˈdɛl ɪk/. of, relating to, or characteristic of unbelievers or infidels.

noun

  1. a person who has no religious belief; unbeliever

adjective

  1. rejecting a specific religion, esp Christianity or Islam
  2. of, characteristic of, or relating to unbelievers or unbelief

mid-15c. (adjective and noun), from Middle French infidèle, from Latin infidelis “unfaithful, not to be trusted,” later “unbelieving,” from in- “not, opposite of” (see in- (1)) + fidelis “faithful” (see fidelity). In 15c. “a non-Christian” (especially a Saracen); later “one who does not believe in religion” (1520s). Also used to translate Arabic qafir, which is from a root meaning “to disbelieve, to deny,” strictly referring to all non-Muslims but virtually synonymous with “Christian;” hence, from a Muslim or Jewish point of view, “a Christian” (1530s; see kaffir).

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