irreverence

noun

ir·​rev·​er·​ence i-ˈre-v(ə-)rən(t)s 

ˌi(r)-,

-ˈre-vərn(t)s

1

: lack of reverence

2

: an irreverent act or utterance

Synonyms

• blasphemy
• defilement
• desecration
• impiety
• profanation
• sacrilege

Examples of irreverence in a Sentence

the sect has no tolerance for any irreverence directed toward their spiritual leader

Recent Examples on the Web

Its homewares collection has the same irreverence — pieces that flirt with the line between humor and high design. —WWD, 11 Dec. 2024

Its jokes are profound, its wisdom ridiculous, its irreverence wide-eyed and irresistible. —Pitchfork, 3 Dec. 2024

King Kennedy Rugs owner Mikael Kennedy treats his inventory with a unique mixture of reverence and irreverence. —Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 23 Oct. 2024

Funk describes the group of Bay Area and Central Valley painters and ceramicists working in an idiosyncratic and blithely crude figurative Pop style that foregrounded humor and irreverence, and which overlapped with the somewhat more specific group of Nut artists. —Sarah Lehrer-Graiwer, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1