Carnal


pertaining to or characterized by the flesh or the body, its passions and appetites; sensual:
carnal pleasures.
not spiritual; merely human; temporal; worldly:
a man of secular, rather carnal, leanings.
Contemporary Examples

In 1927, the FBI defined rape as “the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.”
Is Sex Assault a Crime in the Ivy League? Olivia Nuzzi May 9, 2014

Forgotten is the carnal fact that the Baghdad government said “Get out!”
We Need Liberals Now! Leslie H. Gelb October 27, 2011

But, at least in this work, Kadare lacks Kundera’s ability to show the links between our carnal and our philosophical selves.
Great Weekend Reads The Daily Beast February 3, 2011

But the connections between musicians extend beyond just the carnal.
The Ultimate Rock Trivia Quiz Peter Lauria October 27, 2010

As middle-class women became more careerist, this phantom vamp used her carnal savvy to “sleep her way to the top.”
Bedding the Boss Tracy Quan October 4, 2009

The sheets did little to muffle the carnal soundtrack emanating from inside.
‘Zumba Madam’ Allegedly Used Maine Dance Studio As Brothel and Made Videos of Customers Winston Ross October 17, 2012

This will dramatically reduce your chances of being blackmailed or otherwise exposed by your carnal co-conspirator.
Arnold’s Divorce Scandal: 7 Basic Tips for Horny Politicians Michelle Cottle May 17, 2011

Coltrane, an authentically spiritual man, but not innocent of carnal imperatives.
The Stacks: John Coltrane’s Mighty Musical Quest Nat Hentoff October 17, 2014

The technique worked so well—even curing his impotence—that Georgie used it to her carnal advantage for years.
Seduce Like a Writer: How 7 Famous Scribes Wooed Joni Rendon, Shannon McKenna Schmidt February 12, 2014

adjective
relating to the appetites and passions of the body; sensual; fleshly
adj.

c.1400, “physical, human, mortal,” from Old French carnal and directly from Medieval Latin carnalis “natural, of the same blood,” from Latin carnis “of the flesh,” genitive of caro “flesh, meat” (see carnage). Meaning “sensual” is from early 15c.; that of “worldly, sinful” is from mid-15c. Carnal knowledge is attested from early 15c. and was in legal use by 1680s.

Unconverted men are so called (1 Cor. 3:3). They are represented as of a “carnal mind, which is enmity against God” (Rom. 8:6, 7). Enjoyments that minister to the wants and desires of man’s animal nature are so called (Rom. 15:27; 1 Cor. 9:11). The ceremonial of the Mosaic law is spoken of as “carnal,” because it related to things outward, the bodies of men and of animals, and the purification of the flesh (Heb. 7:16; 9:10). The weapons of Christian warfare are “not carnal”, that is, they are not of man’s device, nor are wielded by human power (2 Cor. 10:4).

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