hypercritical

[ hahy-per-krit-i-kuhl ]
See synonyms for hypercritical on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. excessively or meticulously critical; overcritical.

Origin of hypercritical

1
First recorded in 1595–1605; hyper- + critical

Other words from hypercritical

  • hy·per·crit·i·cal·ly, adverb

Words that may be confused with hypercritical

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use hypercritical in a sentence

  • Why is it then that, at this moment, I feel inclined to be hyper critical and disparaging?

    Barren Honour: A Novel | George A. Lawrence
  • He was fastidious and hyper-critical to a degree, and he wished her ring to suit her, to be flawless.

    The Purple Heights | Marie Conway Oemler
  • It is quite true that these terms are not well adapted to resist hyper-critical attack.

  • The hyper-critical spirit is fatal to growth under any condition.

    Craftsmanship in Teaching | William Chandler Bagley
  • But then, on occasions, he was disposed to be hyper-critical.

    The Silent House | Fergus Hume

British Dictionary definitions for hypercritical

hypercritical

/ (ˌhaɪpəˈkrɪtɪkəl) /


adjective
  1. excessively or severely critical; carping; captious

Derived forms of hypercritical

  • hypercritic, noun
  • hypercritically, adverb
  • hypercriticism, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012