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There are actresses who've had expensive work done and look great, so I'm not holier-than-thou about it. But it wouldn't be for me, perhaps because I've already been in hospital and wouldn't want to volunteer myself for it again.
Celia Imrie

Meaning of "holier-than-thou" in the English dictionary

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DICTIONARY
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PRONUNCIATION OF HOLIER-THAN-THOU

holier-than-thou play
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WHAT DOES HOLIER-THAN-THOU MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Self-righteousness

Self-righteousness is a feeling or display of moral superiority derived from a sense that one's beliefs, actions, or affiliations are of greater virtue than those of the average person. Self-righteous individuals are often intolerant of the opinions and behaviors of others. The term "self-righteous" is often considered derogatory particularly because self-righteous individuals are often thought to exhibit hypocrisy due to the belief that humans are imperfect and can therefore never be infallible, an idea similar to that of the Freudian defense mechanism of reaction formation. The connection between self-righteousness and hypocrisy predates Freud's views, however, as evidenced by the 1899 book Good Mrs. Hypocrite: A Study in Self-Righteousness, by the pseudonymous author "Rita."...

Definition of holier-than-thou in the English dictionary

The definition of holier-than-thou in the dictionary is offensively sanctimonious or self-righteous.

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE HOLIER-THAN-THOU

holiday home
holiday job
holiday pay
holiday rep
holiday resort
holiday spirit
holiday traffic
holiday village
holiday-maker
holidayer
holier
holies
holiest
holily
holiness
Holinshed
holism
holist
holistic
holistically

WORDS THAT END LIKE HOLIER-THAN-THOU

cachou
Ch´ang-chou
Changzhou
Chaozhou
chou
Fuzhou
Guangzhou
Guizhou
Hangzhou
Jinzhou
Lanzhou
Shenzhou
Su-chou
Suzhou
thou
Wenzhou
Xuzhou
Zhangzhou
Zhengzhou
Zhou

Synonyms and antonyms of holier-than-thou in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «HOLIER-THAN-THOU»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «holier-than-thou» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of holier-than-thou

Translation of «holier-than-thou» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF HOLIER-THAN-THOU

Find out the translation of holier-than-thou to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of holier-than-thou from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «holier-than-thou» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

圣洁高于你
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

más santo - que-tú
570 millions of speakers

English

holier-than-thou
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

पवित्र से भी तू
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

أقدس مما كان أنت
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

святее , чем ты
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

mais santo do que tu -
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

নাক উঁচু গোষ্ঠীগুলোর-চেয়ে-তুমি
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

saint-que - tu
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Holier-than-thou
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

selbstgerecht
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

聖人 - より - 汝
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

거룩 보다 그대
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Holier-than-thou
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

thánh thiện hơn hơn ngươi
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

பரிசுத்தமானவர்கள் விட நீ
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

तुझ्या पेक्षाही पवित्र
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

holier-daha-sen
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

santo - di-te
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

bardziej święty niż ty
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

святіше , ніж ти
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

mai sfânt - decât - te
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

ιερότερο - από - εσύ
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

heiliger -as- jy
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

heligare - än-du
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

holier - than-thou
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of holier-than-thou

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «HOLIER-THAN-THOU»

The term «holier-than-thou» is regularly used and occupies the 92.738 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Regularly used
57
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «holier-than-thou» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of holier-than-thou
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «holier-than-thou».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «HOLIER-THAN-THOU» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «holier-than-thou» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «holier-than-thou» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about holier-than-thou

EXAMPLES

QUOTES WITH «HOLIER-THAN-THOU»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word holier-than-thou.
1
Celia Imrie
There are actresses who've had expensive work done and look great, so I'm not holier-than-thou about it. But it wouldn't be for me, perhaps because I've already been in hospital and wouldn't want to volunteer myself for it again.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «HOLIER-THAN-THOU»

Discover the use of holier-than-thou in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to holier-than-thou and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Holier than thou: Saudi Arabia's Islamc opposition
In this study, the author analyzes the social, political, and economic roots of the Saudi opposition, giving sorely needed context to the phenomenon of bin Laden.
Joshua Teitelbaum, 2000
2
Holier Than Thou: When Faith Becomes Toxic
With wit and keen observations from the Gospel of Matthew, Dr. Ergun Caner charts how a sin-sick soul can move back from obsession to true devotion.
Ergun Caner, 2009
3
Holier Than Thou
"Holier Than Thou" conveys the basic principles that God has revealed to help mankind navigate through life in harmony and unification.
Roberts M' Roberts, 2008
4
Holier Than Thou
From the author of Good Oil, this extraordinary, bittersweet novel portrays a slice of Australian city life through an unforgettable girl named Holly who is navigating the nuances and complexities of being in her early 20s.
Laura Buzo, 2012
5
Holier Than Thou:
Rick Gualtieri. "1Wu "Qanl || ' I '; . w“ ~0I' v Holier Than Thou The Tome of Bill Part IV Rick. l'lliln—'n' 1" HIER 'A b. A u P... K m nn. Front Cover.
Rick Gualtieri, 2013
6
Be Ye Holy... But Not Holier-than-Thou
L. E. E. E. BANTA. “Be Ye Holy...” But not Holier-than-Thou By Lee Banta Copyright 2010 Lee E. Banta. All Rights Reserved.
L. E. E. E. BANTA, 2010
7
Holier Than Thou? 1.5 and Second Generation Korean American ...
In order to understand how the members of the two congregations had different experiences of creating an American identity, I employed two different research methods.
Julie Hee Song, 2009
8
Greener Than Thou: Are You Really an Environmentalist?
aged pastors to sign a “Call to Action,” and the Evangelical Environmental Network's website asks, “What would Jesus drive?” The combination of holier than thou with greener than thou has only strengthened regulatory environmentalism.
Terry Lee Anderson, Laura E. Huggins, 2008
9
Begat: The King James Bible and the English Language
The newspaper report was headed Holier than Thou? That was where I was intending this chapter to end. Then I discovered a candidate for the worst pun in this book. Studios for tattooing and body piercing. Called Holier than thou. is ...
David Crystal, 2010
10
Holier Than Thou: Proceedings of the 1978 Kioloa Conference ...
Papers by P.J. Hughes, J.W. Magee, G.S. Hope, J. Coleman, J.H. Hope, D. Ranson, I. Johnson, M.J. Morwood, E.D. Stockton, W.J. Caelli, M.E. Sullivan, J.W. Rhoads, and R. Jones separately annotated.
Ian Johnson, 1980

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «HOLIER-THAN-THOU»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term holier-than-thou is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Meet The Rich Man's Malcolm X | The Daily Caller
This is catnip for a particular kind of holier-than-thou white who is looking to get off to white guilt porn. They seem to love the Manichean quality ... «Daily Caller, Jul 15»
2
Noonday Demons | Review | Theatre | The Stage
... of desert for himself, all pretence to humility and self-abasement disappear as the two enter into a string of holier-than-thou competitions. «The Stage, Jul 15»
3
Gwyneth Paltrow Is Here to Teach You How to Yawn Properly …
Gwyneth Paltrow isn't incurring any favors with her holier-than-thou / I'm-better-than-you attitude, manifested mostly in her Goop weekly letters, ... «Softpedia News, Jul 15»
4
Whole Foods Caught With Their Thumb On The Scale And … - Forbes
Holier-than-thou Whole Foods has admitted cheating its customers by systematically overcharging in stores in California and New York. «Forbes, Jul 15»
5
COMMENT: Discrimination harming churches - Gleaner Story
I'm afraid too many people of religion have a holier-than-thou attitude. The pilgrims left Holland because of religious persecution. So what did ... «Evansville Courier & Press, Jul 15»
6
APC and Akande's Entreaty
... is a careful balancing of the various strength of each part of the relationship and not for one group to assume a holier-than-thou attitude. «AllAfrica.com, Jul 15»
7
Plaintiffs in Chicago-Area Lawsuit Assert a "Civil Right" to Enact Gun …
The suit is already being widely covered by the media, which provides yet another opportunity for incessant pontification and holier-than-thou ... «AmmoLand Shooting Sports News, Jul 15»
8
We need reminders from the past
The holier-than-thou crowd on the left is in a tizzy equal in furor and indignation to the anti-gay crowd on the right. The senseless shooting of ... «The Ranger, Jul 15»
9
READY: The white lie church cake
I especially relate to contemporary parables which remind us of our dramatic attempts to maintain some holier-than-thou persona. «Destin Log, Jul 15»
10
Reflections on 'To Kill A Mockingbird': The book that changed …
... South was a world full of Boo Radleys—that there were just as many mysterious outsiders as there were righteous, holier-than-thou mobs. «AL.com, Jul 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Holier-Than-Thou [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/holier-than-thou>. Apr 2024 ».
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