hypocritical

[ hip-uh-krit-i-kuhl ]

adjective

1. of the nature of hypocrisy, or pretense of having virtues, beliefs, principles, etc., that one does not actually possess:

   The parent who has a “do what I say and not what I do” attitude can appear hypocritical to a child.

2. possessing the characteristics of hypocrisy:

   Isn't a politician hypocritical for talking about human dignity while voting against reasonable social programs?

Other Words From

• hypo·criti·cal·ly adverb
• unhyp·o·criti·cal adjective
• unhyp·o·criti·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of hypocritical¹

First recorded in 1515–25; equivalent to Greek hypokritik(ós) (from hypokritḗs “a stage actor” + -ikós -ic ( def ) ) + -al ¹( def ); hypocrite ( def )

Related Words

• deceptive
• duplicitous
• false
• insincere
• sanctimonious
• self-righteous
• unnatural