unorthodox

Etymology

It is formed from English un- + orthodox.^[2][3][4][5] The adjective orthodox is from Late Latin orthodoxus,^[3][6] from Ancient Greek ὀρθόδοξος (orthódoxos, “having the right opinion”),^[3][6] from ὀρθός (orthós, “right, true, straight”) and δόξα (dóxa, “opinion, praise”), from δοκεῖν (dokeîn, “to seem”), from Proto-Indo-European *dek- (“to take, accept”).^[3][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Not orthodox, contrary to what is accepted: 1629, in a work by W. Prynne on the Church of England.^[2][7] Etymonline dates it to the 1650s, in the sense "heretical, heterodox".^[3]

Semantic evolution

The first uses concerned religious doctrine,^[3][8] and Johnson (1755) defined it as "not holding pure doctrine".^[8] As orthodox was applied to subjects other than religion from the 1640s,^[3] its negative came to mean unconventional in general; the Historical Thesaurus places it under both heterodoxy and deviation from a rule or standard from 1629.^[9] The noun unorthodoxy is recorded from 1701.^[2]

Timeline

• 1629 – not orthodox; contrary to what is accepted.^[2][7] Etymonline dates it to the 1650s.^[3]
• 1701 – unorthodoxy, an unorthodox opinion or practice.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Not in line with accepted or traditional doctrine, methods, customs or opinions; unconventional: The coach's unorthodox training drew criticism.^[7][10][2]
2. In religion, not holding the accepted doctrine; heterodox or heretical.^[8][3][7]

Word family

• unorthodoxly
• unorthodoxy

Related words

• orthodox
• orthodoxy
• heterodox
• paradox
• doxology
• dogma

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
7. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
8. ^ a b c Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
9. ^ Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
10. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins