profane

Pronunciation

• IPA: /pɹəˈfeɪn/ (UK); /pɹəˈfeɪn/, /pɹoʊˈfeɪn/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

The adjective is inherited from Middle English prophane, borrowed from Middle French profane,^[2][3][4][5] and directly from Latin profānus (“unholy, not consecrated”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from prō fānō “in front of (outside) the temple”,^[2][3][4][6] from prō “before” and fānum “temple”.^[2][3][4][5] The verb is from Latin profānāre “to desecrate”.^[3][4][5][6] It is related to fane and fanatic.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

As a verb, to treat sacred things with irreverence, to desecrate (1382);^[7][3][4] as an adjective, secular, not devoted to sacred purposes (mid-15th century in Etymonline; 1483 in the OED).^[4][7]

Semantic evolution

In Latin profānus described what lay outside the temple, and of persons “not initiated”.^[4][6] English kept the sense “secular, not sacred”, as in profane history and profane literature (1483),^[7] and the sense “not initiated” in playful use.^[4][7] The sense “irreverent toward God or holy things” dates from the 1550s,^[4][7] and from it came the use of profane for blasphemous or vulgar language.^[2][5][6]

Timeline

• 1382 – verb, to desecrate.^[7][3]
• c. 1450 – adjective, secular, unconsecrated.^[3][4]
• c. 1560 – irreverent toward sacred things.^[7][4]
• 1607 – profanity.^[3]
• 1616 – not initiated.^[7]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Showing contempt or irreverence for what is sacred; blasphemous.
2. Not concerned with religion; secular, as in sacred and profane music.
3. Vulgar or coarse, especially in language.
4. Not initiated into a body of secret knowledge or ritual.

Verb

1. To treat (something sacred) with irreverence; to desecrate.
2. To put to an improper or degrading use; to debase.

Word family

• profanely
• profaneness
• profaner

Related words

• profanation
• profanity
• fanatic
• fane
• sacred
• sacrilege

Usage notes

The AHD distinguishes profane, implying abusive disrespect for the sacred, from blasphemous, referring to impious speech, and sacrilegious, implying desecration of what is held sacred.^[2]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press