as in temporal
not involving religion or religious matters
that's an issue for the secular authorities, not the church
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Recent Examples of secular
Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 23 May 2025
For one thing, the Catholic culture war has been an argument about how to adapt to or resist a secular and liberal form of modernity that no longer seems particularly dominant.
—Ross Douthat, Mercury News, 14 May 2025
Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2023
These data imply to me that the secular are getting idiocratic faster than the fundamentalists.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 16 Aug. 2012
See All Example Sentences for secular
Adjective
For over a decade, the secular government’s bilateral diplomacy with the pope has been treated as separate from ecumenism efforts between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Holy See.
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 23 May 2025
For one thing, the Catholic culture war has been an argument about how to adapt to or resist a secular and liberal form of modernity that no longer seems particularly dominant.
—Ross Douthat, Mercury News, 14 May 2025
Noun
There was a change of heart among the secular nationalists during the second intifada—which started in 2000 and ended in 2005—in which seculars also joined forces.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2023
These data imply to me that the secular are getting idiocratic faster than the fundamentalists.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 16 Aug. 2012
See All Example Sentences for secular
Recent Examples of Synonyms for secular
Adjective
-
Though the papal tiara, symbolizing spiritual, temporal and supreme power, is still revered, no pope has worn it since Paul VI (1963-1978), who sold his for charity.—
NBC News,
NBC news,
18 May 2025
-
Those questions are, so often, temporal and corporeal.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
10 May 2025
Noun
-
Ludacris praises Miller for his affable personality and his ability to explain things in layman’s terms.—
Todd Longwell,
Variety,
9 Apr. 2025
-
In layman’s terms, this means that DEB uses plant sugars and natural enzymes to create biobased materials (such as biopolymers) in eco-friendly conditions.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Sourcing Journal,
3 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
From a nonreligious perspective, the sense of reverent occasion is palpable, rippling out from Rome.—
Raven Smith,
Vogue,
7 May 2025
-
Researchers asked more than 2,000 people from various religious and nonreligious backgrounds to write about their experiences with karma — the belief that good deeds are rewarded, and bad actions are punished — and a common through-line of their responses emerged.—
Kameryn Griesser,
CNN Money,
1 May 2025
Noun
-
The updates themselves are rather technical and may not do much to excite a layperson, but the brand’s efforts have been well received by those in the know.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
3 Sep. 2019
-
For a medicine to be granted OTC status, it must be deemed sufficiently safe to do so without monitoring from a medical professional, be effective, and include labeling understandable to the layperson to ensure proper use.—
Joshua P. Cohen,
Forbes.com,
6 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Secular.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/secular. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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