heretic

American  

[her-i-tik, her-i-tik, huh-ret-ik] / ˈhɛr ɪ tɪk, ˈhɛr ɪ tɪk, həˈrɛt ɪk /

noun

1. a professed believer who maintains religious opinions contrary to those accepted by their church or rejects doctrines prescribed by that church.

   Synonyms:

   Protestant, recreant, backslider, apostate

2. Roman Catholic Church. a baptized Roman Catholic who willfully and persistently rejects any article of faith.

3. anyone who does not conform to an established attitude, doctrine, or principle.

   Synonyms:

   freethinker, skeptic, dissenter

---

adjective

1. heretical.

heretic British  

/ ˈhɛrətɪk, hɪˈrɛtɪkəl /

noun

1. RC Church a person who maintains beliefs contrary to the established teachings of the Church

2. a person who holds unorthodox opinions in any field

---

heretic Cultural  

1. One who challenges the doctrines of an established church (see also established church). Martin Luther was proclaimed a heretic for rejecting many of the tenets of the Roman Catholic Church.

---

Other Word Forms

• heretical adjective
• heretically adverb
• semiheretic adjective

Etymology

Origin of heretic

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English heretik from Middle French heretique from Late Latin haereticus from Greek hairetikós “able to choose” ( Late Greek: “heretical”), equivalent to hairet(ós) “that may be taken” (verbal adjective of haireîn “to choose”) + -ikos -ic

Example Sentences

It is set at a biographical turning point: 1147, when Hildegard’s transcribed visions were submitted to the pope, who would declare her either a prophet or a heretic.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026

And he doesn't necessarily hope to, he said, which "makes me a bit of a heretic."

From Salon • Aug. 14, 2024

“To pose these questions doesn’t mean being an enemy or a heretic but a practical” person, Meloni said in a 70-minute speech.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 25, 2022

He was greeted as a heretic, a pariah.

From Washington Post • Aug. 23, 2022

I sat there feeling myself a heretic, believing only in this one-shot life and the body.

From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Related Words

• dissenter
• schismatic