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infidel. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
infidel, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
infidel in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
First attested 1460, from Middle French infidèle, from Latin īnfidēlis (“unfaithful”), from in- (“not”) + fidēlis (“faithful”). See fidelity.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɪn.fə.dl̩/, /ˈɪn.fəˌdɛl/
Adjective
infidel (comparative more infidel, superlative most infidel)
- Rejecting a specific religion.
- Of, characteristic of, or relating to unbelievers or unbelief.
1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter 7, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:(...) how it is that to his name who yesterday departed for the other world, we prefix so significant and infidel a word, and yet do not thus entitle him, if he but embarks for the remotest Indies of this living earth;(...)
1881, Ernestine Rose, A Defence of Atheism, J.P. Mendum, page 20:But not only have the priests tried to make the very term Atheism odious, as if it would destroy all of good and beautiful in nature, but some of the reformers, not having the moral courage to avow their own sentiments, wishing to be popular, fearing lest their reforms would be considered Infidel, (as all reforms assuredly are), shield themselves from the stigma, by joining in the tirade against Atheism, and associate it with everything that is vile, with the crime of slavery, the corruptions of the Church, and all the vices imaginable.
Noun
infidel (plural infidels)
- (now usually derogatory) One who does not believe in a certain religion.
1779, Vicesimus Knox, On the Prevalence of Religious Scepticism:The infidel writer is a greater enemy to society.
2005, George W. Braswell, Islam and America: Answers to the 31 Most-asked Questions, page 33:Some Muslims are taught that non-Muslims are infidels and are to be shunned.
- (now usually derogatory) One who does not believe in a certain principle.
- (now usually derogatory) One with no religious beliefs.
Synonyms
Translations
non-believer
- Albanian: qafir m
- Arabic: كَافِر (kāfir), كَافِرَة f (kāfira)
- Azerbaijani: kafir (az), gavur (az)
- Bashkir: кафыр (kafır) (in Islam)
- Bengali: কাফির (kaphir)
- Bulgarian: неверник (bg) m (nevernik)
- Catalan: infidel (ca) m or f
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 不信神的 (bù xìnshén de)
- Czech: nevěřící m
- Danish: vantro c
- Dutch: ongelovige (nl) m or f
- Esperanto: malkredulo
- Faroese: vantrúgvandi, vantrúgvin
- Finnish: vääräuskoinen (fi), pakana (fi), uskoton (fi)
- French: infidèle (fr) m or f, incroyant (fr) m, mécréant (fr) m
- German: Ungläubiger (de) m, Ungläubige (de) f
- Greek: άπιστος (el) (ápistos)
- Ancient: ἄπιστος (ápistos)
- Hebrew: כּוֹפֵר (he) m (kofér), אֶפִּיקוֹרֶס (he) m (epikóres), אֶפִּיקוֹרוֹס (he) m (epikóros)
- Hindi: नास्तिक (hi) m (nāstik), काफ़िर m (kāfir)
- Indonesian: kafir (id), keparat (id)
- Irish: neamhchreidmheach m, ainchreidmheach m, díchreidmheach m
- Italian: infedele (it) m or f
- Japanese: 不信者 (ふしんじゃ, fushinja)
- Kazakh: кәпір (käpır)
- Korean: 불신자 (bulsinja)
- Kurdish:
- Central Kurdish: گاور (gawr), کافر (kafr)
- Northern Kurdish: gawir (ku), kafir (ku)
- Kyrgyz: каапыр (ky) (kaapır)
- Latin: īnfidēlis m or f
- Malay: kafir
- Manx: anchredjaltagh m, anchreestee m (non-Christian)
- Maori: kaiwhakaponokore
- Ottoman Turkish: كاور (gâvur)
- Pashto: کافر (ps) (kāfér)
- Persian: کافر (fa) (kâfar)
- Polish: niewierny (pl) m
- Portuguese: infiel (pt) m or f
- Romanian: necredincios (ro) m
- Russian: неве́рный (ru) m (nevérnyj), неве́рующий (ru) m (nevérujuščij), инове́рец (ru) m (inovérec)
- Sanskrit: धन्य (sa) m (dhanya), पाषण्ड (sa) m (pāṣaṇḍa)
- Scottish Gaelic: neo-chreidmheach m
- Serbo-Croatian:
- Cyrillic: нѐве̄рнӣк m, нѐвје̄рнӣк m
- Roman: nèvērnīk (sh) m, nèvjērnīk (sh) m
- Spanish: infiel m or f, descreído (es) m, impío (es) m, descreída (es) f, impía (es) f
- Swedish: otrogen (sv)
- Tajik: кофир (kofir)
- Tatar: көфер (köfer)
- Turkish: kâfir (tr)
- Turkmen: kapyr
- Urdu: کافر m (kāfir)
- Uyghur: كاپىر (kapir)
- Uzbek: kofir (uz)
- Yiddish: אַפּיקורס m (apikoyres)
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Anagrams
Catalan
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin īnfidēlis (“unfaithful”).
Adjective
infidel m or f (masculine and feminine plural infidels)
- unfaithful
- Antonym: fidel
Derived terms
Noun
infidel m or f by sense (plural infidels)
- infidel
Further reading
Romanian
Etymology
Borrowed from French infidèle, from Latin infidelis. Equivalent to in- + fidel.
Adjective
infidel m or n (feminine singular infidelă, masculine plural infideli, feminine and neuter plural infidele)
- unfaithful
Declension