Miscreaunce

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Archaic term for a false or mistaken belief, especially a departure from accepted religious doctrine ; a wicked act or offence against moral or social rules
2. An old word for holding erroneous religious convictions or heresy ; a sinful deed or transgression committed against what is right
3. Heretical unbelief in the eyes of the church ; an evil action or misconduct that breaks moral law

Etymology: Miscreaunce comes from Old French "mescreance," meaning misbelief or unbelief. It combines the prefix "mes-," meaning wrongly or amiss, with "creire," to believe, which descends from Latin "credere." The earliest sense was religious: holding a false faith, or rejecting the true one. The move to moral wrongdoing followed naturally. Someone who believed wrongly was also assumed to act wrongly, so heresy blurred into general wickedness. The related word "miscreant" took the same path, starting as an unbeliever and ending up as a villain.

Synonyms: misdeed, wrongdoing, transgression

Antonyms: virtue