agnostic

Pluralagnostics

1. 1
   unsure about godadjective

   Holding or relating to the view that the existence of God or any deity is unknown or cannot be proven.

   After years of quiet doubt, he remained agnostic about the existence of any deity.

   My grandfather grew agnostic in his forties, though he still went to church at Christmas.

   UsageOften agnostic about God or religion; not the same as atheist, which means not believing in any god.

   Note

   A coined word with a known birthday: Thomas Henry Huxley made it in 1869, either from Ancient Greek ágnōstos, "not knowing", or by putting a- in front of Gnostic. Either way the root is gignṓskō, "I know", so the word is about knowledge rather than belief. The agnostic position is that the question of God cannot be settled or proven, not that the answer is no. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 6 facts

   • Thomas Henry Huxley coined agnostic in 1869. cs.clarku.edu
   • The proposed formations are from Ancient Greek ágnōstos or from a- plus Gnostic. en.wiktionary.org
   • Ancient Greek ágnōstos can mean not knowing. en.wiktionary.org
   • Both proposed formations ultimately derive from gignṓskō, meaning I know. en.wiktionary.org
   • The distinction concerns knowledge and does not itself determine religious belief. en.wikipedia.org
   • Agnosticism questions whether God's existence can be established rather than asserting that God does not exist. scepsis.net
2. 2
   a doubting personnouncountable

   A person who holds that the existence of a deity is unknown or cannot be proven.

   The debate paired a devout believer with a thoughtful agnostic.

   Several agnostics in the group doubted the question could ever be settled.

   Similarskeptic, doubter

   Oppositebeliever

   Note

   The noun has been explained again and again by those who wear it. Leslie Stephen's "An Agnostic's Apology" (1876) capitalizes it like the name of a sect. Bertrand Russell's "What is an Agnostic?" (1953) frames it as the impossibility of knowing. A character in Carl Sagan's Contact (1985) puts it most simply: the evidence isn't in. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 6 facts

   • Leslie Stephen's essay An Agnostic's Apology first appeared in 1876. en.wikisource.org
   • Stephen capitalizes Agnostic in the essay's text. gutenberg.org
   • Bertrand Russell wrote What Is an Agnostic?, first published in 1953. users.drew.edu
   • Russell explains agnosticism through the impossibility of knowing, including impossibility at the present time. scepsis.net
   • Carl Sagan's novel Contact was first published in 1985. en.wikipedia.org
   • A character in Contact explains being agnostic by saying that the evidence isn't in. en.wiktionary.org
3. 3
   fits any systemadjective

   Designed to operate without depending on the specific type of components, platform, or input it interacts with.

   The protocol is agnostic to the underlying transport layer.

   Good design keeps the service agnostic about which database stores its data.

   UsageOften in compounds such as platform-agnostic; alone it takes to or about: agnostic to the transport layer.

   Similarindependent, neutral

   Oppositedependent

   Note

   In software and engineering the word names a design virtue: a component that makes no assumptions about what it connects to.

4. 4
   no firm opinionadjectivecolloquial

   Having no firmly held opinions about a particular matter or question.

   The committee remained agnostic about which software vendor to choose.

   He's politically agnostic, refusing to commit to either party.

   UsageUsually with about or on: agnostic about which vendor to choose, agnostic on the debate.

   Similarneutral, undecided, noncommittal, uncommitted

   Oppositecommitted, partisan, opinionated

   Note

   Borrowing the weight of the religious sense for a much smaller matter gives the phrase a faintly wry, considered tone. It suggests judgment held back, not a lack of interest.

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