God-fearing

• godfearing, god-fearing

From God +‎ fearing, likely a continuation (in altered form) of earlier Middle English goddfrihti, gode-frigti (“god-fearing”), variants of Middle English godfriht, gode-friht, godfruht, god-furht, from Old English godfyrht, godefriht (“god-fearing”). Cognate with Gothic 𐌲𐌿𐌳𐌰𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌷𐍄𐍃 (gudafaurhts, “god-fearing, devout”).

God-fearing (comparative more God-fearing, superlative most God-fearing)

1. (religion) Following the precepts of a religious practice; respecting and revering God and his authority.

   Margie married Bill, a good, God-fearing Christian.

   • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter X, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

     The skipper Mr. Cooke had hired at Far Harbor was a God-fearing man with a luke warm interest in his new billet and employer, and had only been prevailed upon to take charge of the yacht after the offer of an emolument equal to half a year's sea pay of an ensign in the navy.