heretic

noun

her·​e·​tic ˈher-ə-ˌtik 

ˈhe-rə-

1

religion : a person who differs in opinion from established religious dogma (see dogma sense 2)

especially : a baptized member of the Roman Catholic Church who refuses to acknowledge or accept a revealed truth

The church regards them as heretics.

2

: one who differs in opinion from an accepted belief or doctrine : nonconformist

Synonyms

• dissenter
• dissident
• renegade

Examples of heretic in a Sentence

The church regards them as heretics.

Galileo was condemned as a heretic for supporting Copernicus's thesis that the earth revolves around the sun and not vice versa.

Recent Examples on the Web

Young Morrison got a harsh lesson in how things are done in a blue state: Liberal groupthink is gospel, dissenters are heretics who should be hushed. —Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 28 May 2025

Already a professional heretic, Kennedy became the pandemic’s leading skeptic. —Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 19 May 2025

The first is that those who advocate it, even in the mildest terms, are threatened with death as heretics or apostates. —Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Foreign Affairs, 16 June 2015

The witch in question is Jovovich’s Gray Alys, introduced on the brink of being hanged as a heretic by Ash (Arly Jover), a fervent enforcer in a dystopian future ruled by both a royal house and cult-like church. —Dennis Harvey, Variety, 6 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English heretik, borrowed from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French heretic, heretik, borrowed from Late Latin haereticus, hereticus, borrowed from Late Greek hairetikós, from hairetikós, adjective, "departing from dogma, heretical," going back to Greek, "able to choose, due to choice," from hairetós "that may be taken, eligible, chosen," verbal adjective of haireîn "to take, grasp, (middle voice) obtain, choose, prefer" + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at heresy

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

heretic

noun

her·​e·​tic ˈher-ə-ˌtik 

: a person who believes or teaches something opposed to accepted beliefs