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As with many definitions, the meaning of the words "atheist" and "agnostic" are difficult to pin down, and they mean different things to different people in different contexts. Let's start with some basic dictionary definitions. The American Heritage Dictionary defines an "atheist" as "one who disbelieves or denies the existence of God or gods." An "agnostic" is "one who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God" or "one who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism." This dictionary also notes that 19th-century British scientist Thomas H. Huxley invented the word "agnostic." Huxley was an ardent Darwinist who used "agnostic" to describe his attitude toward religion. He wrote: "Agnosticism, in fact, is not a creed, but a method." This method of thought advocates that people "do not pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated or demonstrable." An agnostic doesn't necessarily believe or disbelieve in a god -- he or she doesn't profess to know if there's a god at all. Huxley's writings may also suggest that it's impossible to ever know if a god exists or not.
Atheism is a little simpler to understand and is basically defined as a disbelief in any god. However, atheists themselves hold varied beliefs that generally fall into two main camps. "Weak atheism" is a lack of belief in a god. "Strong atheism" is a belief that no god exists and cannot exist. To compare the two, a weak atheist might say, "Gods might exist, but I don't worship them." Whereas a strong atheist might say, "It is impossible for any gods to exist, so there's no reason to believe in the idea." Neither believes in a
god, but only the strong atheist denies the existence of gods. Atheist and agnostic aren't interchangeable terms, but they can overlap. Occasionally, people use "agnostic" as a more socially acceptable word for "atheist." This usage irritates some atheists. They think that agnosticism is just a subset of atheism because agnostics generally do not believe in gods. Some feel that using "agnostic" in this way reinforces the incorrect idea that all atheism is strong atheism.
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