Adjacent Words

Heretic definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

HER'ETIC, n.
1. A person under any religion, but particularly the christian, who holds and teaches opinions repugnant to the established faith, or that which is made the standard of orthodoxy. In strictness, among christians, a person who holds and avows religious opinions contrary to the doctrines of Scripture, the only rule of faith and practice.
2. Any one who maintains erroneous opinions.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a person who holds religious beliefs in conflict with the dogma of the Roman Catholic Church [syn: heretic, misbeliever, religious outcast]
2: a person who holds unorthodox opinions in any field (not merely religion)

Merriam Webster's

noun Date: 14th century 1. a dissenter from established religious dogma; especially a baptized member of the Roman Catholic Church who disavows a revealed truth 2. one who dissents from an accepted belief or doctrine ; nonconformist

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 the holder of an unorthodox opinion. 2 hist. a person believing in or practising religious heresy. Derivatives: heretical adj. heretically adv. Etymology: ME f. OF heretique f. eccl.L haereticus f. Gk hairetikos able to choose (as HERESY)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Heretic Her"e*tic, n. [L. haereticus, Gr. ? able to choose, heretical, fr. ? to take, choose: cf. F. h['e]r['e]tique. See Heresy.] 1. One who holds to a heresy; one who believes some doctrine contrary to the established faith or prevailing religion. A man that is an heretic, after the first and second admonition, reject. --Titus iii. 10. 2. (R. C. Ch.) One who having made a profession of Christian belief, deliberately and pertinaciously refuses to believe one or more of the articles of faith ``determined by the authority of the universal church.'' --Addis & Arnold. Syn: Heretic, Schismatic, Sectarian. Usage: A heretic is one whose errors are doctrinal, and usually of a malignant character, tending to subvert the true faith. A schismatic is one who creates a schism, or division in the church, on points of faith, discipline, practice, etc., usually for the sake of personal aggrandizement. A sectarian is one who originates or is an ardent adherent and advocate of a sect, or distinct organization, which separates from the main body of believers.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(heretics) 1. A heretic is someone whose beliefs or actions are considered wrong by most people, because they disagree with beliefs that are generally accepted. He was considered a heretic and was ridiculed and ostracized for his ideas. N-COUNT 2. A heretic is a person who belongs to a particular religion, but whose beliefs or actions seriously disagree with the principles of that religion. N-COUNT

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Sectary, schismatic, separatist.

Moby Thesaurus

Albigensian, Arian, Bohemian, Cathar, Donatist, Ebionite, Erastian, Gnostic, Jansenist, Lollard, Manichaean, Monophysite, Montanist, Pelagian, Sabellian, Waldensian, Wyclifite, antinomian, apostate, beatnik, defector, deviant, deviationist, dissenter, dissident, dropout, emanationist, flower child, freak, hippie, hylotheist, iconoclast, infidel, maverick, misbeliever, misfit, nonconformist, nonjuror, original, pantheist, recreant, recusant, renegade, revisionist, schismatic, sectarian, sectary, separatist, swinger, ugly duckling, unbeliever, unconformist, yippie