adj.
- Having or exhibiting religious reverence; earnestly compliant in the observance of religion; devout. See synonyms at religious.
- Marked by conspicuous devoutness: a pious and holy observation.
- Marked by false devoutness; solemnly hypocritical: a pious fraud.
- Devotional: pious readings.
- Professing or exhibiting a strict, traditional sense of virtue and morality; high-minded.
- Commendable; worthy: a pious effort.
[From Latin pius, dutiful.]
piously pi'ous·ly adv.piousness pi'ous·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
