deism

[ dee-iz-uhm ]

/ ˈdi ɪz əm /

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noun

belief in the existence of a God on the evidence of reason and nature only, with rejection of supernatural revelation (distinguished from theism).

belief in a God who created the world but has since remained indifferent to it.

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Origin of deism

1675–85; <French déisme<Latin de(us) god + French -isme-ism

Words nearby deism

deionization, deionize, deipnosophist, Deira, Deirdre, deism, deisolate, deist, Deiters' cell, deity, deixis

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use deism in a sentence

Indeed, just last week, a cluster of polls showed that deism is on the upswing in America.
Mike Huckabee’s Bully Pulpit: Economic Populism|Lloyd Green|December 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Deism is the belief in a supreme being who is a creator who does not intervene in the universe.
Mike Huckabee’s Bully Pulpit: Economic Populism|Lloyd Green|December 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It is a contest in which opinions may vary in all degrees, from pure Deism to utter Ultramontanism.
The English Church in the Eighteenth Century|Charles J. Abbey and John H. Overton
Mr. Mitchell was nominally a Unitarian in his religious creed, but he held very lax notions of this theology, and verged to Deism.
The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.III.|E. Farr and E. H. Nolan

Deism is a "sordid" creed, which relegates God to heaven and ignores his ever-operating life in creation.
The Life of Mazzini|Bolton King
The God, who serves as the foundation of natural religion, or deism, is himself the greatest of mysteries.
Good Sense|Paul Henri Thiry, Baron D'Holbach
But already in high society in Germany the wind no longer set in the direction of pure Deism.
German Problems and Personalities|Charles Sarolea

British Dictionary definitions for deism

deism

/ (ˈdiːɪzəm, ˈdeɪ-) /

noun

belief in the existence of God based solely on natural reason, without reference to revelationCompare theism

Derived forms of deism

deist, noun, adjectivedeistic or deistical, adjectivedeistically, adverb

Word Origin for deism

C17: from French déisme, from Latin deus god

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for deism

deism

[ (dee-iz-uhm) ]

The belief that God has created the universe but remains apart from it and permits his creation to administer itself through natural laws. Deism thus rejects the supernatural aspects of religion, such as belief in revelation in the Bible (see also Bible), and stresses the importance of ethical conduct. In the eighteenth century, numerous important thinkers held deist beliefs. (See clockwork universe.)

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