heretic

American  

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

noun

• heretics
  plural

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

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adjective

1. heretical.

heretic British  

/ ˈhɛrətɪk /

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

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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.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• heretical
  adjective
• semiheretic
  adjective
• heretically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• heretics
  plural

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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

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Explanation

If your friend became interested in Hinduism, with its many gods and rituals, her Catholic mother might be worried that her daughter was a heretic, or a person whose religious beliefs are in contrast to the fundamental beliefs of her church. The noun heretic is mostly used in a religious context to talk about someone whose actions or beliefs act against the laws, rules, or beliefs of some specific religion. However, heretic can also be used in a non-religious way to mean "someone whose ideas go against the norm." Say your regular hangout is a cowboy honky-tonk and most of your friends play in country bands; you might be considered a heretic if you announced that your favorite kind of music is actually opera.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

heretic heretics

This was a genius-level insight that caused Thiel to be hounded out of San Francisco as a heretic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2025

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

From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2024

She told legislators last week that questioning Europe doesn’t make anyone “an enemy or a heretic, but a pragmatist, who does not fear saying when something doesn’t work properly.”

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 3, 2022

“I am a known heretic in these parts because I mow the lawn on Sundays,” one resident proclaims.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 17, 2022

When the book was published Calvin contacted the authorities in Vienna and had the heretic imprisoned.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

The most riveting parts of “Mobilize” are those that bring Mr. Sankar’s heretics to life.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026

He taught an essential lesson by asserting that religious and political people alike were divided between those who hunted for heretics and those who sought converts.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 23, 2022

They were considered heretics by IS, a Sunni jihadist group.

From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2021

Initially a slur against heretics, the term “Protestant” was soon embraced by those followers, who used it as a defiant badge of honor.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2020

All night, I slept with Gwenforte curled beside me, and my sleep was deeper than any I had had since my disaster with the heretics in Italy.

From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz

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Related Words

• dissenter
• schismatic

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