deity
DEE-ih-tee
/ˈdiː.ə.ti/
A god or goddess; a divine being worshipped for having supreme power over nature or human fortunes.
A formal, academic term used to refer to any divine being across different mythologies and religions, without favoring one specific faith.
The story behind the word. Deity comes from the Latin deitas, which was coined by the Christian philosopher Saint Augustine in the 4th century. He created the word from deus (god) as a direct translation of the Greek word theotes, to describe the essential nature of being a god.
Word relationships
- god: A common, everyday term for a divine being, whereas deity is a more formal and academic term.
- divinity: The state of being divine, or a divine being, often used abstractly to describe the quality of godhood.
- mortal: A human being subject to death, as opposed to an immortal divine being.
Commonly confused with
- pantheon: A pantheon is the entire collection of gods belonging to a particular religion, whereas a deity is a single individual god within that system.
Word family
- deify (verb): To worship or treat someone as a god.
- deification (noun): The act of treating someone or something as a god.
Collocations
- supreme deity
- pagan deity
- worship a deity
- local deity
Example sentences
- "Poseidon was the ancient Greek deity responsible for the oceans, earthquakes, and horses." Describing ancient Greek mythology.
- "Many early human societies worshipped a powerful female deity associated with fertility and the earth." An academic discussion of early human religions.
Memory hook
A deity rules over destiny (dei-ty / des-tiny). A formal word for a god or goddess.
When not to use
Do not use when referring specifically to the monotheistic God of Judaism, Christianity, or Islam if the context requires the specific personal name or title 'God'.
Fun facts
- The Latin root deus is also the source of the word 'divine' and is distantly related to the Greek name Zeus, the king of the Olympian gods.
Related words
Explore more words
theology, temple, omnipotence, monotheism, devotion, oblation
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