unreverendadj.
/(ˌ)ʌnˈrɛv(ə)rənd/, /(ˌ)ʌnˈrɛv(ə)rn̩d/, U.S. /ˌənˈrɛvər(ə)nd/, /ˌənˈrɛvrənd/ Now rare.
1. Not characterized by or expressing reverence; irreverent; disrespectful. Cf. unreverent adj.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrespect > irreverence > [adjective]
unreverenta1425
aweless1440
irreverent1550
unreverendc1562
irreverend1576
unawful1627
irreverential1652
unreverential1793
c1562 in J. Strype Ann. Reformation (1709) xxviii. 295 All unreverend Speaking of God's holy Predestination.
1580 Second & Third Blast Plaies 119 The plaier, whose reprehension is as vnreuerend, and odious, as the reprehension of a Magistrate is decent, and commendable.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) ii. vi. 14 Fie, fie, vnreuerend tongue, to call her bad. View more context for this quotation
1659 W. Chamberlayne Pharonnida iv. i. sig. A6 That it might unreverend gazers tell It once was sacred.
1782 Excellent Coll. Pious & Devout Medit. i. 3 Consider then, how unreverend thou art towards thy Creator: how unthankful for his mercies.
1820 C. Lamb in London Mag. Oct. 367/2 They rather hold such curiosities to be impertinent—unreverend.
1858 C. H. Monicke Bk. Brit. Poets 107 He [sc. Bp. Richard Corbett] was famous for his jests, in which he indulged in a most unreverend manner.
1923 Kingsport (Tennessee) Times 14 Aug. 3/2 In a stinging novel an anonymous scribe has laid unreverend hands on a great institution of learning.
2. Unworthy of reverence or respect. Frequently addressing or with reference to a member of the clergy (after reverend adj. 1), sometimes overlapping with sense 1.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrespect > irreverence > [adjective] > not worthy of reverence
aweless1440
irreverenta1513
unreverent1576
unreverend1581
unvenerablea1616
irreverend1748
unawful1799
1581 P. Wilburn Checke or Reproofe M. Howlets Vntimely Shreeching f. 36v In Saunders Epistle therefore (To the most vnreuerend Cardinals, Iohn Moron and twoo other).., not only Iyingly and slaunderously chargeth he the godly lawes of this Realme with impietie & tyrannie [etc.].
1608 Merry Deuill of Edmonton sig. F Hild. Why Reuerend knight? Sir Ra. Vnreuerend Frier.
1618 W. Hornby Scourge Drunkennes sig. C2 Vnreuerend Sirs, your places fit you ill, Because you cherish Vice and Vertue kill.
1681 Hue & Cry after Dr. T. O. (single sheet) All the Infamous Works of Smith, Janeway, Curtis, and Care; As also the great Works of that Vnreverend Divine R. B——r.
1782 G. R. Fitzgerald Appeal to Public 245 The various advertisements and paragraphs in the public prints, fabricated as they were under his direction, or by that of an un-reverend Dean,..have not always spoken the language of truth.
1876 ‘G. Eliot’ Daniel Deronda IV. viii. lxii. 226 The presence of this unreverend father..affected Mirah with..shame and grief.
1880 J. Thomson City of Dreadful Night 45 Long grey unreverend locks befouled with mire.
1935 W. Roughead Knave's Looking Glass 305 A familiar but unreverend figure in the back streets of the city was old Mary Haldane, a retired harlot.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2014; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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adj.c1562