hypercritical

American

[hahy-per-krit-i-kuhl] / ˌhaɪ pərˈkrɪt ɪ kəl /

adjective

excessively or meticulously critical; overcritical.

hypercritical British

/ ˌhaɪpəˈkrɪtɪkəl /

adjective

excessively or severely critical; carping; captious

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

hypercritic noun
hypercritically adverb
hypercriticism noun

Etymology

Origin of hypercritical

First recorded in 1595–1605; hyper- + critical

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.

Every run that Australia managed to eke out for their final wicket would have gnawed away at Bavuma who was, if we are being hypercritical, guilty of a slight captaincy misstep.

From BBC • Jun. 13, 2025

Just understand, your words are no match for my evidence,” he said in his February speech in Iowa, referencing some of the more hypercritical social media backlash he received after the 2021 address.

From Washington Post • Apr. 12, 2023

Sometimes you’re hypercritical of the things that maybe you do actually want to do.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 13, 2022

Kind of the most hypercritical audience you will ever play to in your whole career.

From Salon • Jul. 9, 2022

Throughout my entire PhD candidacy, he was hypercritical of my work.

From "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023