1. a person who emphasizes piety, devotion, and religious feeling, especially as a reaction against formalism or intellectualism in religion
Usage: often capitalized when referring to members of the Pietist movement in 17th–18th century Protestant Christianity
2. a person who makes a show of piety or religious devotion, often insincerely
Usage: often used critically or disapprovingly

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of pietism or pietists
Usage: often capitalized when referring to the historical Pietist movement

Examples

• The pietist movement emphasized personal spiritual experience over rigid church doctrine.
• She was known as a pietist who spent hours in prayer and meditation.
• His pietist attitude masked a lack of genuine compassion for others.
• Pietist communities in colonial America valued simplicity and moral discipline.
• The critic dismissed him as a pietist more concerned with appearing righteous than doing good.
• Pietist theology influenced many Protestant denominations in Northern Europe.