heretic
Other forms: heretics
If your friend became interested in Hinduism, with its many gods and rituals, her Catholic mother might be worried that her daughter was a heretic, or a person whose religious beliefs are in contrast to the fundamental beliefs of her church.
The noun heretic is mostly used in a religious context to talk about someone whose actions or beliefs act against the laws, rules, or beliefs of some specific religion. However, heretic can also be used in a non-religious way to mean "someone whose ideas go against the norm." Say your regular hangout is a cowboy honky-tonk and most of your friends play in country bands; you might be considered a heretic if you announced that your favorite kind of music is actually opera.
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a person who holds religious beliefs in conflict with official dogma, especially of the Roman Catholic Churchsynonyms: misbeliever, religious outcast
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a person who holds unorthodox opinions in any field (not merely religion)
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Vocabulary lists containing heretic
Published in 1949, this dystopian classic imagines a future of perpetual war, militaristic propaganda, and total government surveillance.
Tired of their constant bickering, Beatrice and Benedick's friends hatch a plan to get the two to fall in love. Learn these words from Shakespeare's comedy about fidelity and deception. Read the full text here.
These lists are arranged in order of difficulty, from easiest to most challenging. Learn them all and you’ll feel terrif-ic! Here are links to our lists for the collection: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4