Etymologically
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hypocritical

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Pronunciation

  • /hɪpəˈkɹɪtɪkəl/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English hypocritic + -al,[2][3][4] and Merriam-Webster derives it from hypocrite with -ical.[5][6] Hypocritic is from Ancient Greek ὑποκριτικός (hupokritikós, “acting a part, pretending”),[2][4] probably through Medieval Latin hypocriticus.[4][3] The Greek adjective comes from ὑποκριτής (hupokritḗs, “actor, hypocrite”), from ὑποκρίνομαι (hupokrínomai, “to play a part on stage”),[1] formed from ὑπό (hupó, “under”) and κρίνω (krínō, “to sift, decide”),[1][2] which Etymonline traces to Proto-Indo-European *krei- (“to sieve”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of actions, characterized by hypocrisy; of persons, given to it: 1553, in R. Horne's translation of Calvin's Certaine Homilies.[4] The 1989 OED gave 1561,[7] while Merriam-Webster dates the word to 1540,[5] and Etymonline to the 1540s, implied in hypocritically, which the OED records from 1548.[2][4]

Semantic evolution

Middle English used hypocrite itself as an adjective, from about 1400, as well as a noun.[2] Hypocritical won out over hypocritish (1520s) and hypocritic (1530s; 1540 in the OED), which meant the same.[2][4] Behind the word lies a Greek development from "to separate gradually" to "to answer", then "to answer a fellow actor on stage" and "to play a part", so that the noun of acting came to mean pretence.[2] Grammarphobia suggests that actors may have been seen as setting aside their own judgment to play a role, but calls the etymology unclear.[8]

Timeline

  • 1540 – the earlier adjective hypocritic.[4]
  • 1548 – the adverb hypocritically.[4]
  • 1553 – characterized by hypocrisy; of persons, given to hypocrisy.[4] The 1989 OED dated it to 1561.[7]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Showing or marked by hypocrisy; insincere or false: a hypocritical show of concern.[9][5][4]
  2. Of a person, being a hypocrite; claiming beliefs or virtues that one does not live up to: It is hypocritical to preach thrift while spending freely.[9][5][4]

Word family

  • hypocritically
  • unhypocritical

Usage notes

Hypocritical is sometimes confused with hypercritical, excessively critical.[10][8] The two are not opposites: they share the Greek root of critical but have different prefixes, hyper- "over" and hypo- "under".[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Gove, Philip Babcock, ed. (1961), Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam
  7. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ a b c O'Conner, Patricia T.; Kellerman, Stewart, The Grammarphobia Blog, grammarphobia.com, p. "Hypercritical vs. hypocritical", 2 January 2013
  9. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  10. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House