iconoclast
noun
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Iconoclast comes from the Middle Greek word eikonoklástēs, which translates literally as “image destroyer.” While the destruction wrought by today’s iconoclasts is figurative—in modern use, an iconoclast is someone who criticizes or opposes beliefs and practices that are widely accepted—the first iconoclasts directed their ire at religious icons, those representations of sacred individuals used as objects of veneration. The Byzantine Empire’s Iconoclastic Controversy occurred in the 8th and 9th centuries, but the word iconoclast didn’t find its way to English until the 17th century. Figurative use came later still.
Examples of iconoclast in a Sentence
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
Here Zohran lives again, too, in the character of a charming iconoclast who achieved rapid success at a young age.
—Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 5 Dec. 2025
Her immersion into cross-cultural divinity takes root on LUX in vanguard beats, searching timbres, and a colossal, sometimes operatic voice, attuned to pop iconoclasts like Bjork (featured on LUX) and Kate Bush.
—Jenn Pelly, Time, 4 Dec. 2025
But Richmond’s solo work reflects his pop-rock sensibility too, and his humor and storyteller’s delivery are reminiscent of the late country-folk iconoclast Todd Snider’s.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Nov. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Iconoclast.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iconoclast. Accessed 16 Dec. 2025.
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