What does "profane" mean?
Profane: Unclean; impure; polluted; unholy. Nothing is profane that serveth to holy things. Sir W. Raleigh.
Additional senses
- 2.Treating sacred things with contempt, disrespect, irreverence, or undue familiarity; irreverent; impious. Hence, specifically; Irreverent in language; taking the name of God in vain; given to swearing; blasphemous; as, a profane person, word, oath, or tongue. 1 Tim. i.
- 3.See Impious.
- 4.To violate, as anything sacred; to treat with abuse, irreverence, obloquy, or contempt; to desecrate; to pollute; as, to profane the name of God; to profane the Scriptures, or the ordinance of God. The priests in the temple profane the sabbath. Matt. xii.
- 5.2. To put to a wrong or unworthy use; to make a base employment of; to debase; to abuse; to defile. So idly to profane the precious time. Shak.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00