n. 1. Christianity A proponent of the doctrine of antinomianism. 2. One who denies the fixed meaning or universal applicability of moral law. adj. 1. Christianity Of or relating to the doctrine of antinomianism. 2. Opposed to or denying the fixed meaning or universal applicability of moral law: "By raising segregation and racial persecution to the ethical level of law, it puts into practice the antinomian rules of Orwell's world. Evil becomes good, inhumanity is interpreted as charity, egoism as compassion" (Elie Wiesel). [From Medieval Latin Antinomī, antinomians, pl. of antinomus, opposed to the moral law : Greek anti-, anti- + Greek nomos, law; see nem- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.