1
as in dissident
deviating from commonly accepted beliefs or practices
a Christian clergyman with a very heterodox opinion on the divinity of Jesus
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unconventional
not rigidly following established form, custom, or rules
her heterodox approach to teaching science initially met with some resistance from her peers
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heterodox
Mollino—a heterodox figure who, from the margins, influenced the trajectory of twentieth-century design—likely never spent a single night there; its existence was only discovered after his death.
—
Javier Montes, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
At Sovereign House, Allen and Easton curated a list of heterodox, and sometimes controversial, speakers.
—Emma Green, New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2025
The Free Press has won fans, and created plenty of fodder for critics, with heterodox columns and features.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2025
The original Brat offered a heterodox synth album and venting session dressed in pop-diva garments for normies caught in its flytrap, and Completely different reworks its source material, unraveling threads interwoven in Charli’s patchwork sound.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for heterodox
Javier Montes, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
At Sovereign House, Allen and Easton curated a list of heterodox, and sometimes controversial, speakers.
—Emma Green, New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2025
The Free Press has won fans, and created plenty of fodder for critics, with heterodox columns and features.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2025
The original Brat offered a heterodox synth album and venting session dressed in pop-diva garments for normies caught in its flytrap, and Completely different reworks its source material, unraveling threads interwoven in Charli’s patchwork sound.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for heterodox
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heterodox
Adjective
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Gu’s critics found more fuel Thursday night following the heroics of Liu, the daughter of a Chinese dissident father who fled China due to his role in the pro-democracy protests and ensuing massacre in Tiananmen Square in 1989.—
Griffin Eckstein,
NBC news,
20 Feb. 2026
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Maybe Mark Kelly and several other dissident members of Congress are hiding the sun in a big bag.—
Alexandra Petri,
The Atlantic,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Crawford modeled a plunging pinstripe vest featuring an unconventional wrap closure, pairing it with matching trousers.—
Hannah Malach,
InStyle,
27 Feb. 2026
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The two strike up a somewhat unconventional romance after meeting on Christmas in Colin’s local pub wherein their first date involves a back-alley blowjob and little conversation.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Drunkenness, like madness, protects the messengers of heretical truth from disbelief, disdain, and retaliation.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Feb. 2026
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This heretical policy gets some support from yet another rigid convention, that of credits, which separates directors from screenwriters.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The annual event in Indianapolis also allows general managers to speak with one another in person, engage in informal chats with agents and meet with the media to discuss their visions.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
25 Feb. 2026
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This was at a time before the blues had become popularized and migrated to clubs on the North Side, and so Branch spent nights at such South and West Side clubs as Pepper’s Lounge, Checkerboard, Theresa’s Lounge and no-name basements and informal spaces.—
Rick Kogan,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Board member Renee Paschall cast the lone dissenting vote on the final package.—
Elizabeth Sander,
San Antonio Express-News,
19 Aug. 2022
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The document runs to more than a hundred and fifty pages, and for each question there are affirmative and dissenting studies, as well as some that indicate mixed results.—
The New Yorker,
The New Yorker,
3 June 2022
Cite this Entry
“Heterodox.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heterodox. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
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