heinous
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- heinously adverb
- heinousness noun
- nonheinous adjective
- nonheinously adverb
- nonheinousness noun
Etymology
Origin of heinous
1325–75; Middle English heynous < Middle French haineus, equivalent to haine hatred (derivative of haïr to hate < Germanic ) + -eus -ous
Explanation
A heinous crime is very evil or wicked. Of course, some people only use the term as an exaggeration, claiming that their parents' requirement that they write thank you notes after their birthdays is a heinous form of torture. Heinous descends from Middle English, from Old French haineus, from haine "hatred," from hair "to hate." So when you want to use the word heinous in all seriousness, think of acts that are considered hateful (or outrageous, and shocking). Think: treason, torture, the clubbing of baby seals. Heinous is pronounced HĀ-nəs.
Vocabulary lists containing heinous
Brave New World
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The Other Wes Moore
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "H"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He discovers additional benefits in the process: “Characters revealed themselves as I assumed their points of view, especially when exploring their best defenses for selfish and heinous actions.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026
He also accused DOJ lawyers of destroying the office’s good standing with the judiciary and suggested that its incompetence has allowed defendants to evade just penalties for heinous crimes.
From Slate • Mar. 20, 2026
The catty media site Gawker noted that corners of the internet like 4Chan could be expected to respond with heinous pranks, without realizing how vile the rhetoric of regular people was about to get.
From Salon • Feb. 16, 2026
She had pushed back on suggestions from her daughter to have an open hearing, worried about cementing her status as the victim of a heinous crime.
From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026
Using it to keep any witch quiet now was considered a most heinous offense.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
