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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
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Recent Examples of heretic
While many European nations and Canada do subject hateful or vaguely threatening speech to sanctions, ours is a rough and tumble nation born of the Boston Tea Party and settled by Pilgrims, who were heretics of their time.
—
Marc Levin, Twin Cities, 7 Oct. 2025
Among those applauding at the end was Carmen Chaplin, one of the director’s granddaughters, and even heretics, whose faith in Chaplin is fickle, will have been swept along.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
Giordano Bruno, a like-minded heretic, already had been just a few years earlier.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2025
This approach demands that those who were once secular priests—the leaders of the philanthropic sector—abandon their cassocks and accept the mantle of the heretic.
—Mark Malloch-Brown, Foreign Affairs, 15 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for heretic
Marc Levin, Twin Cities, 7 Oct. 2025
Among those applauding at the end was Carmen Chaplin, one of the director’s granddaughters, and even heretics, whose faith in Chaplin is fickle, will have been swept along.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
Giordano Bruno, a like-minded heretic, already had been just a few years earlier.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2025
This approach demands that those who were once secular priests—the leaders of the philanthropic sector—abandon their cassocks and accept the mantle of the heretic.
—Mark Malloch-Brown, Foreign Affairs, 15 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for heretic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heretic
Noun
-
Demanding papers, dragging away dissenters.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Tanenbaum is his sixth sitting justice, leaving the senior justice, Jorge Labarga, as a lonely dissenter facing mandatory retirement in October 2027.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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An exhibition in Beijing delving into anonymity, a key code of the house stemming back to the founder Martin Margiela’s Greta Garbo-like ways — and the face-obscuring masks that have been a feature of the brand since the Belgian maverick arrived on the international fashion scene.—
Miles Socha,
Footwear News,
10 Feb. 2026
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Miss Piggy the diva, Kermit the moral compass, Gonzo the maverick, etc.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Advertisement But pro-democracy figures have argued that local governance has grown increasingly aligned with the mainland as political dissidents have either been jailed or exiled, organizations have disbanded, and a free press dismantled.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
10 Feb. 2026
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Beijing’s national security law has transformed Hong Kong, with authorities jailing dozens of dissidents; forcing civil society groups and outspoken media outlets to disband; and neutering the city’s once-raucous political scene.—
Chris Lau,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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But, a renegade locomotive is careening toward Los Angeles in its place.—
Jillian Sederholm,
Entertainment Weekly,
29 Jan. 2026
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Holding hands, terrace kisses and renegade servants?—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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But, more intriguingly, the often shape-shifting iconoclast will be trying on what promises to be a new or at least evolved musical style.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
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The women in her stories feel profound, distinct uncertainty toward convention—less as iconoclasts than fierce individuals.—
Chloe Schama,
Vogue,
26 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Heretic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heretic. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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