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Secular vs Earthly - What's the difference?

secular | earthly |

As adjectives the difference between secular and earthly

is that secular is not specifically religious while earthly is relating to the earth or this world, as opposed to heaven.

As nouns the difference between secular and earthly

is that secular is a secular ecclesiastic, or one not bound by monastic rules while earthly is (uk|colloquial) a slightest chance (of success etc) or idea (about something).

As an adverb earthly is

in an earthy manner.

secular

English

Alternative forms

* (archaic)

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Not specifically religious.
  • Temporal; something that is worldly or otherwise not based on something timeless.
  • (Christianity) Not bound by the vows of a monastic order.
  • secular clergy in Catholicism
  • Happening once in an age or century.
  • The secular games of ancient Rome were held to mark the end of a saeculum and the beginning of the next.
  • Continuing over a long period of time, long-term.
  • The long-term growth in population and income accounts for most secular trends in economic phenomena.
    ''on a secular basis
  • * 2006 , The Economist, Economics focus: Dividing the pie
  • The skewed distribution of productivity gains is thus less a new phenomenon than a secular trend.
  • (literary) Centuries-old, ancient.
  • * 1899 ,
  • The long reaches that were like one and the same reach, monotonous bends that were exactly alike, slipped past the steamer with their multitude of secular trees looking patiently after this grimy fragment of another world, the forerunner of change, of conquest, of trade, of massacres, of blessings.
  • (astrophysics) Of or pertaining to long-term non-periodic irregularities, especially in planetary motion.
  • (atomic physics) Unperturbed over time.
  • * 2000 , S. A. Dikanov, Two-dimensional ESEEM Spectroscopy'', in ''New Advances in Analytical Chemistry (Atta-ur-Rahman, ed.), page 539
  • The secular A and nonsecular B parts of hyperfine interaction for any particular frequencies ?? and ?? are derived from eqn.(21) by ...

    Synonyms

    * (not religious) worldly

    Antonyms

    * nonsecular * (not religious) religious * (not religious) sacred (used especially of music) * (not bound by monastic vows) monastic * (not bound by monastic vows) regular (as regular clergy in Catholicism) * eternal, everlasting * frequent * unpredictable * non-recurring * (finance) short-term * (finance) cyclical

    References

    * Webster's English Dictionary

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A secular ecclesiastic, or one not bound by monastic rules.
  • (Burke)
  • A church official whose functions are confined to the vocal department of the choir.
  • (Busby)
  • A layman, as distinguished from a clergyman.
  • Anagrams

    * ----

    earthly

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Relating to the earth or this world, as opposed to heaven.
  • earthly joys
  • * Milton
  • This earthly load / Of death, called life.
  • * Bible, Phil. iii. 19
  • whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things
  • (negative, informal) (Used to put an emphasis)
  • * Alexander Pope
  • What earthly benefit can be the result?
  • Made of earth; earthy.
  • (Holland)

    See also

    * worldly

    Noun

    (earthlies)
  • (UK, colloquial) A slightest chance (of success etc.) or idea (about something).
  • * 1974 , (GB Edwards), The Book of Ebenezer Le Page , New York 2007, p. 315:
  • ‘Then I didn't have a chance when I stood you a drink?’ I said. ‘Not an earthly !’ she said and laughed; but when I left she kissed me good-night.

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • in an earthy manner
  • Anagrams

    *