Both Uses of
profane
in
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
- She used to add, with a smirk that unprofane people can't control when venturing into profanity, "and wash as far as possible, then wash possible."
p. 27.2unprofane = respectful of things thought sacredstandard prefix: The prefix "un-" in unprofane means not and reverses the meaning of profane. This is the same pattern you see in words like unhappy, unknown, and unlucky.
- He strung ordinary sentences together and they came out sounding either like the most profane curses or like comical poetry.
p. 67.4 *profane = obscene (shockingly offensive by accepted standards)
Definitions:
-
(1)
(profane as in: don't be profane) showing no respect for something thought of as sacred
-
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) Much more rarely profane may mean that something is not sacred or concerned with religion; or that it is not holy because it is unconsecrated, impure or defiled. As a verb it can mean to spoil something considered holy by using it in a degrading or unworthy way.