I. prōˈfān, prəˈ- verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English prophanen, from Latin profanare, from profanus
transitive verb
1. : to violate or treat with abuse, irreverence, obloquy, or contempt (something sacred) : treat as not sacred : desecrate , pollute
the priests in the temple profane the sabbath — Mt 12:5 (Revised Standard Version)
2. : to debase by a wrong, unworthy, or vulgar use : abuse , defile , vulgarize
its borders have not been profaned by the clutter of outdoor advertising signs — Malcolm Bauer
intransitive verb
: to indulge in profanity
we heard a yell and then a loud profaning
II. (ˈ)prō|fān, prəˈf- adjective
Etymology: Middle English prophane, from Middle French, from Latin profanus, from pro- before + fanum temple — more at pro- , feast
1. : unconcerned with that which is religious or with the purposes of religion : not devoted to the sacred and the holy : secular
Jeremiah has been likened to several characters in profane history — A.W.Streane
the profane world of spectators — James Joyce
2. : not holy because unconsecrated, impure, or defiled : not fit or fitted for religious uses : unsanctified ; sometimes : heathen
profane rites
3.
a. : serving to debase or defile that which is holy or worthy of reverence : contemptuous of beautiful or sacred things : irreverent
b.
(1) : characterized by abusive language directed especially against the name of God
(2) : indulging in cursing or vituperation : marked by insulting or perverted utterance
the profane old rascal — Herman Melville
4.
a. : not among the initiated especially to religious rites
b. : not possessing esoteric or expert knowledge
if a picture … had been injured by cleaning, or retouched by some profane hand — Nathaniel Hawthorne
Synonyms:
profane , secular , lay , and temporal can all signify not dedicated to religious ends or uses. profane is mainly descriptive in opposing sacred and sometimes holy, religious, or spiritual
the profane poet is by instinct a naturalist. He loves landscape, he loves love, he loves the humor and pathos of earthly existence. But the religious prophet loves none of these things — George Santayana
profane men living in ships, like the holy men gathered together in monasteries, develop traits of profound resemblance — Joseph Conrad
that little allegory of sacred and profane love — John Galsworthy
secular implies a relation to the world as distinguished from the church, religion, or the religious life
believing that no creed, religious or secular, can be justified except on the basis of reason and evidence — Times Literary Supplement
the secular critics of religion — Reinhold Niebuhr
anarchy in the religious society is as undesirable as it is in the secular world — Leo Pfeffer
and is close to profane
secular and religious music
but sometimes it opposes regular in the sense of governed by monastic rule
a secular priest does not belong to a religious order
and usually it opposes religious in the sense of belonging to or serving the ends of religion or a church
the parochial and secular schools
lay commonly applies to a person who does not belong to the clergy or sometimes to such a person's activities, interests, or duties, usually opposing clerical or ecclesiastic
the priests met with lay members of the parish
Often the term extends to signify nonprofessional
a lay opinion on a medical question
or is often close to average, mundane, sometimes untrained
facts in a war which either are based on military information or which cannot be explained to the lay mind — F.D.Roosevelt
temporal , opposing spiritual in designating what belongs to material or worldly concerns, applies chiefly to sovereigns, rulers, or dignitaries having political authority or civil power
to be ruled in temporal things by clerical authority — Agnes Repplier
the superiority of the spiritual and eternal over the carnal and temporal — H.O.Taylor
our temporal and ecclesiastical overlords
Synonym: see in addition impious .
III. prōˈfān, prəˈ- noun
( -s )
: one that is not initiated — usually used with the
appear … ridiculous to the profane — Ramon Guthrie