pious

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin pīus (“pious, dutiful, blessed, kind, devout”), from Proto-Indo-European *pewH- (“pure”). Cognate with Old English fǣle (“faithful, trusty, good; dear, beloved”). More at feal.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈpaɪəs/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪəs

Adjective

pious (comparative more pious, superlative most pious)

1. Of or pertaining to piety, exhibiting piety, devout, god-fearing.
   • 1850, T. S. Arthur, “Deacon Smith and his Violin”, in Sketches of Life and Character‎^[1], Philadelphia: J. W. Bradley, →OCLC, page 74:

     Old Deacon Smith was quick to see the impression made by Abby Howard upon the mind of his son, and he was wonderfully pleased thereat, for Abby was the oldest daughter of the good Deacon Howard, and was herself a church member, and pious. He had more hope for his son now, than he had felt for years.

   • 2014 December, Paul Salopek, “Blessed. Cursed. Claimed.”, in National Geographic‎^[2], archived from the original on 12 February 2015:

     Its male residents dress like crows: heavy black suits, black Borsalino hats, the old grandfathers hugely whiskered and the boys in peot, the curled sidelocks of the pious.

2. Relating to religion or religious works.

   A pious cause.

3. Insisting on or making a show of one's own virtue, especially in comparison to others; sanctimonious, condescending, judgmental.

Usage notes

• Sometimes used pejoratively, in the sense of "mistaken" or "false" piety, as in "pious errors", "pious frauds".

Synonyms

• reverent, reverential, dutiful, religious, devout, godly, observant

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “of or pertaining to piety”): impious, independent, profane

Hyponyms

• frum

Derived terms

• offensive to pious ears
• pi
• pious fiction
• pious fraud
• piously
• piousness

 

Related terms

• piety

Translations

of or pertaining to piety

• Arabic: صَالِح (ar) (ṣāliḥ), وَرِع (wariʕ), مُتَدَيِّن (mutadayyin), تَقِيّ (taqiyy), بَرّ (barr)
• Armenian: բարեպաշտ (hy) (barepašt)
• Belarusian: набо́жны (nabóžny), пабо́жны (pabóžny), багабо́йны (bahabójny)
• Bulgarian: на́божен (bg) (nábožen), благочести́в (bg) (blagočestív)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 敬虔 (zh) (jìngqián), 虔誠／虔诚 (zh) (qiánchéng)

• Czech: zbožný (cs)
• Danish: ydmyg, from (da)
• Dutch: vroom (nl)
• Esperanto: pia (eo)
• Finnish: hurskas (fi), harras (fi), jumalinen (fi), jumalaapelkääväinen
• French: pieux (fr)
• Galician: pío
• Georgian: ღვთისმოშიში (ɣvtismošiši), მორწმუნე (morc̣mune), ღვთისმოსავი (ɣvtismosavi)
• German: fromm (de), pietätvoll (de)
• Greek: ευσεβής (el) (efsevís), θρήσκος (el) (thrískos)

  Ancient: εὐσεβής (eusebḗs), θρῆσκος (thrêskos)

• Indonesian: saleh (id)
• Japanese: 敬虔な (ja) (けいけいんな, keiken na), 信心深い (ja) (しんじんぶかい, shinjinbukai)
• Kazakh: ғибадатшыл (ğibadatşyl)
• Korean: 경건하다 (ko) (gyeonggeonhada)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: پەرستش (peristiş)

• Latin: pius (la)
• Macedonian: по́божен (póbožen), богоу́годен (bogoúgoden), благо́честив (blagóčestiv)
• Malay: salih, warak (ms), alim (ms)
• Maori: whakapono
• Norman: pieux
• Norwegian: from (no)
• Occitan: piós (oc)
• Old English: ǣfæst
• Plautdietsch: fromm
• Polish: pobożny (pl), nabożny (pl), bogobojny (pl), zbożny (pl)
• Portuguese: pio (pt)
• Romanian: pios (ro)
• Russian: на́божный (ru) (nábožnyj), благочести́вый (ru) (blagočestívyj), богобоя́зненный (ru) (bogobojáznennyj)
• Sanskrit: यज्यु (sa) (yajyu)
• Scottish Gaelic: cràbhach
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: pobožan (sh)

• Slovak: zbožný
• Spanish: piadoso (es), beato (es), pío (es), religioso (es)
• Swedish: from (sv), pietistisk (sv), pietetsfull (sv), andaktsfull (sv), vördsam (sv)
• Tagalog: maka-Diyos
• Tocharian B: kärtse-ṣälype
• Turkish: dindar (tr), imanı bütün, sofu (tr), salih (tr), mütedeyyin (tr)
• Ukrainian: побо́жний (pobóžnyj), набо́жний (nabóžnyj), благочести́вий (uk) (blahočestývyj)
• Vietnamese: sùng đạo (vi)
• Yiddish: פֿרום (frum)

practiced under the pretext of religion

• Bulgarian: набожен (bg) (nabožen)
• Finnish: tekopyhä (fi), muotojumalinen
• Georgian: ღვთისმოშიში (ɣvtismošiši), ღვთისმოსავი (ɣvtismosavi), მორწმუნე (morc̣mune)
• German: scheinheilig (de) (hypocritical)
• Japanese: (phrase) 信心の名を借りた (shinjin no na wo karita), 宗教にかこつけた (shūkyō ni kakotsuketa); (hypocritical) 偽善的な (gizen-teki na)
• Macedonian: по́божен (póbožen)
• Maori: whakapono
• Scottish Gaelic: cràbhach
• Serbo-Croatian: nabožan (sh)
• Turkish: bağnaz (tr), yobaz (tr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Italian: ^{(please verify)} pio (it)
• Old English: ^{(please verify)} hāliġ

Anagrams

• pouis