iconoclastic

[ ahy-kon-uh-klas-tik ]

adjective

1. attacking or ignoring cherished beliefs and long-held traditions, etc., as being based on error, superstition, or lack of creativity:

   an iconoclastic architect whose buildings are like monumental sculptures.

2. breaking or destroying images, especially those set up for religious veneration.

Other Words From

• i·cono·clasti·cal·ly adverb
• noni·cono·clastic adjective
• noni·cono·clasti·cal·ly adverb
• uni·cono·clastic adjective
• uni·cono·clasti·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of iconoclastic¹

First recorded in 1640–45; iconoclast + -ic

Example Sentences

One can read about this in Science and Ethics, written in 2006 by Bernard Rollin, an iconoclastic philosopher who died in November at age 78.

From Nautilus

He prefers iconoclastic approaches, whether by directly funding asteroid detection or advocating for nuclear power to combat global warming.

From MIT Technology Review

The One Thing to See To appreciate Bukele’s iconoclastic political instincts, here’s a clip of his speech to the UN General Assembly in 2019 not long after he took office.

From Time

Iconoclastic individuals are our heroes, and big, bad institutions—monarchies, patriarchies, churches—are the villains.

From The Daily Beast

But the vividly painted remains are still considered by UNESCO to be one of the best examples of post-iconoclastic Byzantine art.

From The Daily Beast

I respect Rabbi Yosef's erudition and his brave and sometimes iconoclastic halakhic (Jewish legal) writings.

From The Daily Beast

He could afford to be iconoclastic, largely unburdened by the demands of ideology as he experimented with policy solutions.

From The Daily Beast

“I saw gay marriage as just another liberal iconoclastic attack on traditional culture,” he said.

From The Daily Beast

After all, however, the most revolutionary and iconoclastic reform in the new China is the changed policy of the schools.

From Project Gutenberg

So iconoclastic an outburst was sure to elicit vindicators of the world's faith as it had long been held.

From Project Gutenberg

It was long a pleasure to believe so and natural, too, until Nottebohm came with his iconoclastic evidence to the contrary.

From Project Gutenberg

The iconoclastic masters of that cluster of magnificent tenements, the Bucoleon, had especial claims upon his recollection.

From Project Gutenberg

On this, as we shall in another chapter see, the popes had revolted from their iconoclastic sovereigns of Constantinople.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• irreverent