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heinous

- 5 dictionary results

hei⋅nous

[hey-nuhs]
–adjective
hateful; odious; abominable; totally reprehensible: a heinous offense.

Origin:
1325–75; ME heynous < MF haineus, equiv. to haine hatred (deriv. of haïr to hate < Gmc) + -eus -ous


hei⋅nous⋅ly, adverb
hei⋅nous⋅ness, noun


wicked, infamous, flagrant, flagitious, atrocious, villainous, nefarious.


admirable.
hei·nous   (hā'nəs)   
adj.  Grossly wicked or reprehensible; abominable: a heinous crime.

[Middle English, from Old French haineus, from haine, hatred, from hair, to hate, from Frankish *hatjan.]
hei'nous·ly adv., hei'nous·ness n.

Heinous

Hei"nous\, a. [OF. ha["i]nos hateful, F. haineux, fr. OF. ha["i]ne hate, F. haine, fr. ha["i]r to hate; of German origin. See Hate.] Hateful; hatefully bad; flagrant; odious; atrocious; giving great great offense; -- applied to deeds or to character.

It were most heinous and accursed sacrilege. --Hooker.

How heinous had the fact been, how deserving Contempt! --Milton.

Syn: Monstrous; flagrant; flagitious; atrocious. -- Hei"nous*ly, adv. -- Hei"nous*ness, n.

heinous 
c.1374, from O.Fr. haineus (Fr. haineux), from haine "hatred," from hair "to hate," from Frank. *hatjan (cf. O.S. haton, O.E. hatian "to hate").

Main Entry: hei·nous
Pronunciation: 'hA-n&s
Function: adjective
: enormously and shockingly evil heinous crime> —hei·nous·ly adverbhei·nous·ness noun
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