heretic

noun

ˈher-ə-ˌtik How to pronounce heretic (audio)
Definition of hereticnext
1
as in dissenter
a person who believes, teaches, or advocates something opposed to accepted beliefs Galileo was condemned as a heretic for supporting Copernicus's thesis that the earth revolves around the sun and not vice versa

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in maverick
a person who does not conform to generally accepted standards or customs he's the ultimate heretic: a Yankees fan living deep in the heart of the Red Sox Nation

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of heretic The Minervois is a sunny land of black truffles, red marble, oak and juniper forests and castles constructed by Cathars (pescatarian Christians who disdained the symbol of the cross, were branded as heretics and subsequently slaughtered wholesale by Papal decree in the 13th century). — Tom Mullen, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025 But a traditional creamy trifle will feature layers of bananas, a vanilla pudding or custard, Nilla wafers (daring heretics might use sponge cake) and then whipped cream or even a meringue. — Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 26 Sep. 2024 In doing so, Rabelais—who was labeled a heretic and saw his books banned—fights false authority with an extravagantly crude, delightfully uncategorizable reading list of his own. — Brendan Fitzgerald, Longreads, 27 Dec. 2024 The point of dogma is to define and defend the borders of acceptable opinion, and brand anyone who goes outside them as quite simply a heretic. — Arianna Huffington, TIME, 11 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for heretic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heretic
  1. dissenter
  2. maverick
  3. renegade
  4. iconoclast
Noun
  • Series creator Dan Erickson and his team studied the ways corporate and government whistleblowers have been treated by these entities in real life — dissenters are first fought, and then made to assimilate, Erickson noted.
    — Leah Asmelash, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025
  • Associate Court of Appeals Judge Jenny Rivera, the lone dissenter to Thursday’s ruling, wrote in her own opinion that the city’s home rule ability to have decision-making power over local matters should’ve trumped the state constitutional restriction.
    — Chris Sommerfeldt, New York Daily News, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of dissenter
Noun
  • Further reading: Trump wants to end this GOP maverick’s political career.
    — Emily Brooks, The Hill, 13 Mar. 2025
  • Since the Second World War, the United States has exercised de-facto military control over Greenland, thanks to the maverick diplomat Henrik Kauffmann, who, as Denmark’s envoy to Washington in 1941, granted the U.S. control over its security.
    — Louise Bokkenheuser, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2025
Definition of maverick
Noun
  • Sports Illustrated even called for UM to disband what was seen then as a renegade football program led by a coach playing by his own rules.
    — Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2025
  • Some have held him up as a renegade, choosing freedom over the comforts of domestic life.
    — Rick Rojas, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2025
Definition of renegade
Noun
  • Sir Raymond Douglas Davies CBE was a remarkable iconoclast.
    — Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 20 Mar. 2025
  • Their prolific, chameleonic hit rate will invite inevitable comparisons to iconoclasts like Sophie, Aphex Twin, and Ryuichi Sakamoto, but — like the greats before them — gyrofield may soon be a genre unto themselves.
    — Sam Davies, Rolling Stone, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of iconoclast

Browse Nearby Words

heresy
heretic
heretical
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Cite this Entry

“Heretic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heretic. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.

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