hea|then

hea|then «HEE thuhn», noun, plural -thens or -then, adjective.

–n.

1. a person who does not believe in the God of the Bible or the Qur'an; person who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim; pagan: »

I was sorry to find more mercy in an heathen than in a brother Christian (Jonathan Swift).

2. people who are heathens: »

The heathen invaded the country destroying all that lay before them.

3. (in the Old Testament) the gentiles, or people who did not worship Jehovah, the God of the Jews.

4. a person who has no religion or culture; unenlightened person.

–adj.

1. of or having to do with heathens; not Christian, Jewish, or Muslim; pagan: »

Christian love among the Churches looked the twin of heathen hate (Tennyson).

2. not religious or cultured; unenlightened.

╂[Old English h (probably originally) heath dweller < h heath]

Synonym Study noun.1 Heathen, pagan mean someone whose religion is not Christian and, usually, neither Jewish nor Muslim. Heathen, still often used in its earlier meaning of someone not converted to Christianity, and usually expressing an emotional attitude, applies particularly to those whose religions are regarded as primitive and unenlightened: »

The heathens worshiped idols. Missionaries go to convert heathens.

Pagan expresses a more objective attitude, and is used especially of the religions of Greece, Rome, and other nations of antiquity: »

The pagans believed in many gods. Julius Caesar was a pagan.