heretic

noun her·e·tic \ ˈher-ə-ˌtik , ˈhe-rə- \

Definition of heretic

1 religion :a person who differs in opinion from established religious dogma (see dogma 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

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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 of heretic from the Web

But if Bannon is angry, Breitbart will treat Trump like a heretic.

— paul bond, The Hollywood Reporter, "Steve Bannon Returns to Breitbart: "Trump Presidency That We Fought For, and Won, Is Over"," 18 Aug. 2017
The Islamic State’s other main target were mosques connected to Shiites, whom the militants consider heretics.

— lee keath, The Seattle Times, "A Mosul mosque in rubble, victim of militants’ destruction," 29 June 2017
The Islamic State’s other main target were mosques connected to Shiites, whom the militants consider heretics.

— Washington Post, "A Mosul mosque in rubble, victim of militants’ destruction," 29 June 2017
After taking office, Trump installed campaign toadies to monitor at least 16 key departments and report heretics to a White House deputy chief of staff.

— john b. judis, New Republic, "Why Trump Is a Loyalty Freak," 16 June 2017
The liberal as heretic, pursued and denounced by the angry children of the liberal ideal.

— john kass, Twin Cities, "John Kass: The left’s angry young devour the liberal old," 11 June 2017
The liberal as heretic, pursued and denounced by the angry children of the liberal ideal.

— john kass, Twin Cities, "John Kass: The left’s angry young devour the liberal old," 11 June 2017
The liberal as heretic, pursued and denounced by the angry children of the liberal ideal.

— john kass, Twin Cities, "John Kass: The left’s angry young devour the liberal old," 11 June 2017
Musayyib and Karbala are predominantly Shiite Muslim, a sect that IS reviles and considers heretics.

— Washington Post, "Twin blasts in Iraq kill 21, wound dozens," 9 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'heretic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.