heretical
/həˈɹɛtɪkəl/adjective
heretical is spelled H-E-R-E-T-I-C-A-L: 9 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 34,912th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, heretical means “Of or pertaining to heresy or heretics” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in heretical?
| Letters | 9: H-E-R-E-T-I-C-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 34,912th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is heretical?
Heretical appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 34,912th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce heretical?
- /həˈɹɛtɪkəl/
Heretical has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-heretical.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of heretical
- more heretical comparative
- most heretical superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does heretical mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or pertaining to heresy or heretics.
- 2
Contrary to mainstream or accepted opinion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Heretical in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | hérétique |
| German | häretisch , ketzerisch |
| Portuguese | herético, herege |
| Spanish | hereje, herético |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does heretical come from?
From Middle English, borrowed from Middle French eretical and from Medieval Latin haereticālis, from haereticus, equivalent to heretic + -al. See heretic.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).