heathen
noun /ˈhiːðn/
/ˈhiːðn/
(old-fashioned, offensive)- used by people who have a strong religious belief as a way of referring to a person who has no religion or who believes in a religion that is not one of the world’s main religions
- He set out to convert the heathen (= people who are heathens).
- used to refer to a person who shows lack of education
Word OriginOld English hǣthen, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch heiden and German Heide; generally regarded as a specifically Christian use of a Germanic adjective meaning ‘inhabiting open country’, from the base of heath.