hypocrite (English)

Where does "hypocrite" come from?

The English word 'hypocrite' traces its lineage back through Old French 'ypocrite'[1] and Latin 'hypocrita'[1] to the Ancient Greek 'hupokritḗs'[1], which originally meant 'actor, hypocrite'[1] or one who plays a part on stage[2]. This Greek noun derives from 'hupokrínomai'[1], meaning 'to answer, act, or feign'[1]. That verb combines 'hupo-', meaning 'under'[4], with 'krīnō'[4], meaning 'to sift, separate, or judge'[4]. The ultimate root is the Proto-Indo-European '*krey-', meaning 'to sift or separate'[5].

Full etymology tree

hypocrite (English), 'Someone who practices hypocrisy, who pretends to hold beliefs, or whose actions are not consistent with their claimed beliefs.'
- borrowed ypocrite (Old French), 'alternative form of ipocrite'
  - inherited hypocrita (Latin), 'mimic (mime artist)'
    - borrowed ὑποκριτής (hupokritḗs) (Ancient Greek), 'one who answers: interpreter, expounder'
      - derived ὑποκρίνομαι (hupokrínomai) (Ancient Greek), 'to answer'
        derived ῠ̔ποκρῑ́νω (hŭpokrī́nō) (Ancient Greek)
        prefix ὑπο- (hupo-) (Ancient Greek), 'under, sub-, hypo-'
        derived κρίνω (kríno) (Ancient Greek), 'to decide or judge'
        inherited *kríňňō (Proto-Hellenic)
        inherited *kri-n-ye- (Proto-Indo-European)
        derived *krey- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to sift, separate, divide'
      - suffix -τής (-tḗs) (Ancient Greek), 'Appended to verbs to form agent nouns'

Ancestors

*krey- (Proto-Indo-European)
ypocrite (Old French)
hypocrita (Latin)
ὑποκριτής (Ancient Greek)

Descendants and derived words

act the hypocrite (English)
hypochristian (English)
hypocrite commit (English)
hypocritely (English)
hypocrite plant (English)
superhypocrite (English)

Sources

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris