Difficulty: Easy
Correct Answer: Atheist
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
This vocabulary question asks you to identify the correct English term for a person who does not believe in any religion or in the existence of God. Such one-word substitution questions are very common in competitive exams, and they test how accurately you understand fine differences between similar sounding words like atheist and rationalist.
Given Data / Assumptions:
Concept / Approach:
The key is to pick the word whose definition precisely matches the idea of not believing in God or in any religion. An atheist is someone who does not believe in the existence of God or gods. A rationalist values reason and evidence, but may or may not reject religion completely. A pagan historically refers to someone who follows a polytheistic or nature based religion, not someone with no religion. A philatelist is totally unrelated to belief; it is a person who collects postage stamps. Therefore, atheist is the only word that directly fits the description in the question.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Focus on the critical phrase does not believe in any religion or in the existence of God.Step 2: Recall that atheist means a person who believes that God does not exist or rejects belief in God.Step 3: Check rationalist; this refers to someone who relies on reason as the main source of knowledge, but a rationalist can still follow a religion, so it is not an exact match.Step 4: Check pagan; this is a follower of a non mainline religion, often worshipping many gods, so this actually implies having a religion, not rejecting it.Step 5: Check philatelist; this clearly means stamp collector and has nothing to do with religious belief. Thus, atheist perfectly matches the description.
Verification / Alternative check:
If we rewrite the stem using the word atheist, we get: An atheist is a person who does not believe in any religion or in the existence of God. This is a standard textbook style definition and appears in dictionaries and exam books. By contrast, a rationalist is usually defined as someone who emphasises reason, often critical of superstition but not necessarily completely without religion. Pagan is used for worshippers of old or non Abrahamic religions, and philatelist appears in hobby contexts only. So only atheist satisfies the exact wording given in the question.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Rationalist focuses on method of thinking, not directly on belief in God; a rationalist might still be religious. Pagan refers to a follower of a particular kind of religion and therefore cannot describe someone without any religion. Philatelist is obviously unrelated to belief systems and only describes a collector of stamps; it is included only to distract you.
Common Pitfalls:
A frequent mistake is to confuse rationalist with atheist because rationalists often criticise blind faith. However, exam questions are precise. Atheist refers specifically to disbelief in God, while rationalist highlights reliance on reason. Remembering these subtle distinctions will help you in many one word substitution questions where more than one option seems loosely related to the stem.
Final Answer:
The correct one word term for a person who does not believe in any religion or in the existence of God is Atheist, so option A is correct.
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