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Which literary character is best known as a hypocrite?

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hypocrite

American  

[hip-uh-krit] / ˈhɪp ə krɪt /

noun

• hypocrites
  plural

1. a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that they do not actually possess, especially a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.

2. a person who feigns some desirable or publicly approved attitude, especially one whose private life, opinions, or statements belie their public statements.

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hypocrite British  

/ ˈhɪpəkrɪt /

noun

1. a person who pretends to be what he is not

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• superhypocrite
  noun
• hypocritical
  adjective
• hypocritically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• hypocrites
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of hypocrite

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English ipocrite from Old French, from Late Latin hypocrita, from Greek hypokritḗs “a stage actor,” hence “one who pretends to be what he is not,” equivalent to hypokrī(nesthai) ( see hypocrisy) + -tēs agent suffix

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Explanation

A hypocrite preaches one thing, and does another. You're a hypocrite if you criticize other people for wearing fur, but pull out your big mink jacket as soon as it gets cold. The word hypocrite is rooted in the Greek word hypokrites, which means “stage actor, pretender, dissembler.” So think of a hypocrite as a person who pretends to be a certain way, but really acts and believes the total opposite. Hypocrites usually talk a big talk but fail to follow their own rules — like an outspoken vegetarian who secretly eats bacon.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hypocrite hypocrites

The Sunday Times carries comments from unnamed friends of the King who the paper says have called Earl Spencer a "hypocrite" who is "peddling Diana's privacy".

From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026

"My mother was a Democrat and my daddy was a Republican, so I’m a hypocrite," she quipped.

From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026

This is, in part, why I’m surprised at Gen Z’s dismissal of Holden Caulfield as a whiny white rich-kid hypocrite.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

That set off a firestorm of comments about whether or not Grantham was a hypocrite.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026

“In our circumstance, he would have done exactly what we did. He’s just too much of a hypocrite to admit it.”

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Like schoolyard kids forced to shake hands after a nasty fight, Americans could use a healthy respect for good form, even at the risk of being hypocrites.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026

“My hope is that I’m getting to bring one of the greatest hypocrites to life in a way that will both make people laugh and also make them recognize that archetype.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2025

And most of the rest, as the Guttmacher statistics show, are liars and/or hypocrites.

From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2023

I worry that it is turning us into hypocrites who, when it comes to the privacy of our conversations, have higher expectations for how others should treat us than for how we treat others.

From Slate ● Aug. 16, 2023

And you don’t like bigots, bullies, snobs or hypocrites.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

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Related Words

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