faithless

C2 Topic:Ethics & Social Judgment

US /ˈfeɪθləs/ UK /ˈfeɪθləs/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like faceless /θ/ vs /s/

Freq #29561

Meanings

1

adj
disloyal, unreliable, or unworthy of trust

The ruler surrounded himself with faithless advisers who deserted him in the crisis.
2

adj
sexually unfaithful to a spouse or partner

The play centers on a faithless husband and the consequences of his deception.
3

adj
lacking religious faith or belief

The preacher condemned the age as faithless, though many listeners disagreed.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · disloyal, unreliable, or... disloyal treacherous untrustworthy perfidious

2 adj · sexually unfaithful to a... unfaithfuladulterous

3 adj · lacking religious faith or... unbelieving irreligious

Opposites

faithful loyal trustworthy devout

Word family

Derived forms faithlesslyfaithlessness

Related forms faith infidelity betrayal

Etymology

From Middle English feithles, formed from faith + -less. The suffix means "without" or "lacking," so the word developed both the religious sense "without faith" and the social sense "not keeping faith with another person."

Topics

Ethics & Social Judgment

External links

# faithless

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈfeɪθləs/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈfeɪθləs/
**Frequency rank:** 29561

## Meanings
1. disloyal, unreliable, or unworthy of trust
2. sexually unfaithful to a spouse or partner
3. lacking religious faith or belief

## Examples
- The ruler surrounded himself with faithless advisers who deserted him in the crisis.
- The play centers on a faithless husband and the consequences of his deception.
- The preacher condemned the age as faithless, though many listeners disagreed.

## Synonyms
- disloyal
- treacherous
- untrustworthy
- unfaithful
- perfidious

## Antonyms
- faithful
- loyal
- trustworthy
- devout

## Derived Forms
- faithlessly
- faithlessness

## Related Forms
- faith
- infidelity
- betrayal

## Etymology
From Middle English feithles, formed from faith + -less. The suffix means "without" or "lacking," so the word developed both the religious sense "without faith" and the social sense "not keeping faith with another person."

## Topics
- Ethics & Social Judgment

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