a person who does not belong to a widely held religion (especially one who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim) as regarded by those who do:my brother and I were raised, as my grandma puts it, as heathens (as plural noun the heathen)a chance of salvation for the heathen
a follower of a polytheistic religion; a pagan.
informal a person regarded as lacking culture or moral principles:eat your chips, you little heathen!