These words are comparable in that they are all used to characterize the thoughts, feelings and actions of people, in so far as they pertain to religion. Religious is a general word that embraces all the other terms in the group. It can mean simply of or having to do with religion: religious literature; the religious life. It can describe anyone, from the man who observes nothing more than the minimum obligations of his faith, to a person who is genuinely devoted to a way of life reflecting a deep love of God as well as adherence to the tenets of one of the systems established for worshipping God: a businessman who found it profitable to be religious on Sundays; a truly religious man who has managed to make the Christian ideal viable in every aspect of his life.

Devout and pious are alike in suggesting a dedication to religion that is evidenced by the observance of established ceremonies and rituals. They differ in that devout always implies that earnest religious feelings motivate the performance of religious obligations, whereas pious may indicate the hypocrisy of one whose religious behaviour is merely outward show: a devout belief in the tenets of Orthodox Judaism; a pious fraud whose mind is more devoted to gossip than to gospel. Sanctimonious , which is never used now in its original meaning of holy or saintly, is stronger than pious in its reference to spurious sanctity: a sanctimonious old man whose condemnation of other people’s actions was a mask for his own immorality.

Reverent , which means feeling or showing reverence or respect, is applied to the character or actions of persons who evince great sincerity of religious belief and observance, and is closer in meaning to devout than to pious .