hypocrisy
/hɪˈpɒkɹəsi/hih-PO-kruh-see
/hɪˈpɑkɹəsi/hih-PAH-kruh-see
Meaningplaying a part
Common meaning: pretending to be better than you are
- hypounder, below normal
- cristo separate, judgeLiddell & Scott, Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon (1889), p. 450 · scan
- ynoun ending: study, state or act
‘under, below normal’ + ‘to separate, judge’ → hypocrisy
Journey through time
- Greekκρίνω‘to separate, judge’
- Latinhypocrisis
- Old Frenchhypocrisiesource
- Englishhypocrisy‘pretending to be better than you are’ · today
hypo- also in: hypocritehypotonichypodermichypothesishypothermia
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Built on Greek κρίνω ‘to separate, judge’.
Roots
- κρίνω Greek “to separate, judge”
Related words
Building blocks are an automatic split · open in app