1
as in temporal
not involving religion or religious matters
it was hard to juggle the requirements of church and our more profane duties
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2
as in atheistical
not showing proper reverence for the holy or sacred
offended by the profane language that her coworkers used so casually
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3
as in obscene
depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society
his idea of dinner table conversation is the telling of profane stories about his alleged sexual exploits
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1
as in to corrupt
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
the once-lovely landscape had been profaned by ugly factories
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2
as in to misuse
to put to a bad or improper use
profaned his considerable acting talents by appearing in some wretched movies
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3
as in to violate
to treat (a sacred place or object) shamefully or with great disrespect
invading troops profaned the altar by playing poker on it
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of profane
Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 6 Nov. 2024
As outré, or even profane, as dirty soda might sound, there are plenty of precedents: ice-cream floats; Italian sodas; egg creams, which despite the name contain only seltzer, chocolate or vanilla syrup, and milk.
—Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024
Steve Marble, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2021
The narrative is that of a leader who has experienced vilification at the hands of enemies who are both secular (and thus profane) and intensely demonic.
—Federico Finchelstein, The New Republic, 3 Nov. 2020
See all Example Sentences for profane 
Adjective
But this is the post-2020 Trump—an older, angrier, more profane Trump, who demanded that his followers embrace his big lie about the last election and whose campaign will go down as one of the most racist, sexist, and xenophobic in modern history.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 6 Nov. 2024
As outré, or even profane, as dirty soda might sound, there are plenty of precedents: ice-cream floats; Italian sodas; egg creams, which despite the name contain only seltzer, chocolate or vanilla syrup, and milk.
—Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
Her husband, the exuberant and often profane former Dodgers manager who won two World Series championships, died Jan. 7 at 93.
—Steve Marble, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2021
The narrative is that of a leader who has experienced vilification at the hands of enemies who are both secular (and thus profane) and intensely demonic.
—Federico Finchelstein, The New Republic, 3 Nov. 2020
See all Example Sentences for profane
Recent Examples of Synonyms for profane
Adjective
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To indicate aging, the number needs to be followed by the temporal unit (5 years or 12 months), otherwise the number is just the name of the product.Alissa Fitzgerald, Forbes, 27 Nov. 2024
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In hindsight, Barcelona’s decision in 2008 to hand control to him, rather than to fall under the sway of his great ideological antithesis, Jose Mourinho, has taken on the air of a temporal border.Rory Smith, The Athletic, 21 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Blink Twice nods at a tangle of different contemporary ailments: lifestyle fetishism, wellness hedonism, our obscene fealty to stolid tech bros and their untrammeled wealth.Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
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Many are short baby names—partly because Australia prohibits long names, obscene words, and names with symbols or too many hyphens.1 Here are some of our favorite boys' names from the land down under.Sherri Gordon, Parents, 2 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Rachel: Yes, this is a film about how absolute power corrupts absolutely and how there is no hope of true justice under late capitalism.Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
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That includes when a campaign staffer accidentally downloads a malicious file or when a hacker corrupts a key data file.Sam Sabin, Axios, 29 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Some argue that the AI makers ought to prevent their generative AI from performing these types of tasks, which otherwise allow people to freely do so and can be misused and misunderstood.Lance Eliot, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024
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Even with best practices in place, passwords can still be stolen or misused.Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report, Fox News, 14 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Faced with community complaints, Mayor Karen Bass retools her affordable housing strategy July 6, 2024 This summer, low-income housing advocates sued the city alleging that Feldstein Soto and Park, with the tacit support of Bass, violated fair housing laws by slow-walking the project.Liam Dillon, Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2024
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The lawsuit alleges the restaurant violated the Texas Dram Shop Act by failing to uphold its staff to safely sell alcoholic beverages.Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Christmas movies—secular and religious—are a great way to remind us that there’s more to this time of year than shopping deals and presents.Erik Kain, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024
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Kwanzaa is a cultural holiday, meaning it is not affiliated with any religion and is instead observed along with other major secular and religious holidays.Olivia Rose, The Arizona Republic, 3 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The show was so bawdy — almost vulgar in a really fun way.Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2024
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Read more Here's what else to know one week before Election Day: Trump is on damage duty: The former president's campaign is scrambling to distance itself from racist, vulgar, and sexist comments made by speakers at Trump's Sunday night rally at Madison Square Garden in New York.Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY, 29 Oct. 2024
Verb
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But the morale of his troops had been degraded too significantly for any meaningful change.Mike Brest, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 9 Dec. 2024
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Hezbollah's military infrastructure has been significantly degraded, and the Lebanese group agreed to a ceasefire with Israel last month under extremely unfavorable terms.Barak Ravid, Axios, 9 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near profane
Cite this Entry
“Profane.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/profane. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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