hypocritical
adjective
hyp·o·crit·i·cal
ˌhi-pə-ˈkri-ti-kəl 
: characterized by behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel : characterized by hypocrisy
a hypocritical attitude/argument
said that it was hypocritical to demand respect from students without respecting them in return
a hypocritical gesture of modesty and virtue—
Robert Graves
Robert Graves
also
: being a person whose actions are contrary to their stated beliefs or feelings : being a hypocrite
… is famous for his … acidic takedowns of craven and hypocritical politicians. —Brett Lang
Brett Lang Examples of hypocritical in a Sentence
it's hypocritical to say mean things behind someone's back, and then to act nice when you want something from her
Recent Examples on the Web
A lot of the other complaints about Cluely seem similarly hypocritical.
—Sam Kriss, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
Former Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon called it hypocritical.
—Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 23 Feb. 2026
While critiques of America’s pernicious gambling culture and hypocritical application to athletes never overwhelm the story (or even develop beyond a few jabs per episode), Season 1 lays the groundwork to delve deeper later on while hitting plenty of targets here and now.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 23 Feb. 2026
That struck him as hypocritical when about a year later, while incarcerated against his will, the same military demanded his willingness to serve, likely in the segregated unit of Japanese American soldiers called the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
—Jake Goodrick, Sacbee.com, 19 Feb. 2026
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Sam Kriss, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
Former Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon called it hypocritical.
—Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 23 Feb. 2026
While critiques of America’s pernicious gambling culture and hypocritical application to athletes never overwhelm the story (or even develop beyond a few jabs per episode), Season 1 lays the groundwork to delve deeper later on while hitting plenty of targets here and now.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 23 Feb. 2026
That struck him as hypocritical when about a year later, while incarcerated against his will, the same military demanded his willingness to serve, likely in the segregated unit of Japanese American soldiers called the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
—Jake Goodrick, Sacbee.com, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hypocritical
Cite this Entry
“Hypocritical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hypocritical. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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