as in romantic
having or marked by a tendency to be guided more by ideals than by reality
an idealist attempt to make a go of a mom-and-pop hardware store on Main Street
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dreamer
one whose conduct is guided more by the image of perfection than by the real world
an idealist sees the best in everyone, regardless of how they behave
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of idealist
Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2024
The film’s first trailer released on Monday, featuring Adam Driver as an idealist architect up against Giancarlo Esposito as a pragmatist mayor.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 May 2024
Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 13 Aug. 2025
Skye acts similarly and is an idealist, never criticizing their views.
—Lisa Stardust, People.com, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for idealist
Adjective
The movie stars Adam Driver as Cesar Catilina, an idealist architect with the power to control time, who is determined to rebuild a city that seems like New York after an accident plunges it into ruins.
—Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2024
The film’s first trailer released on Monday, featuring Adam Driver as an idealist architect up against Giancarlo Esposito as a pragmatist mayor.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 May 2024
Noun
But Loktev is quick to correct anyone who perceives My Undesirable Friends as a snapshot of idealists under duress.
—Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 13 Aug. 2025
Skye acts similarly and is an idealist, never criticizing their views.
—Lisa Stardust, People.com, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for idealist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idealist
Adjective
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In this state, the nervous system’s fight-or-flight response takes priority, inhibiting relaxation, pleasure and trust, which make for the key ingredients of romantic connection.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
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The history of when to break romantic tension on a TV series often has an outsized impact on the reception or even lifespan of that series.—
Mikey O'Connell,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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From vengeful resurrections to satanic rituals, shoplifters waging war on capitalism to secret cults, shadow selves to harrowing births, these genre-defying films crown the Dolls as auteurs, protagonists, dreamers, and disruptors.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
10 Sep. 2025
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My friend, the late Dr. Dorothy I. Height, once described me as a dreamer with a shovel in my hands.—
John Hope Bryant,
Time,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Where that show’s boss (played by Steve Carell) was a bit of an inappropriate fool, Gleeson’s character is more idealistic.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
4 Sep. 2025
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Luke played Adam, an idealistic and patriotic young man who joins the Army in his father’s footsteps after the tragic events of 9/11.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But, because mange often accompanies secondary infections and nutritional imbalances, treatment in the wild is impractical, making the work at Walden's Puddle and other rehabilitation facilities all the more important, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Communications Manager Jason Harmon said.—
Katie Nixon,
Nashville Tennessean,
5 Sep. 2025
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The internet faced ridicule for its impractical nature during its initial development phase.—
Sadhasivam Mohanadas,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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That kind of utopian projection around a magical new technology might sound familiar today.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
9 Sep. 2025
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Further east, the Russian revolutionaries of 1917 adopted a utopian faith in material progress and science.—
Sonja Fritzsche,
The Conversation,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Problems arise when actions are driven by government officials' personal ideological preferences and desires to limit different views, attorneys at Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression and Student Press Law Center said.—
Taylor Seely,
AZCentral.com,
8 Sep. 2025
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Our health policies are guided by evidence, common sense, and respect for individual rights—not ideological agendas or special interests.—
Peter Aitken,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The resulting film is equal parts shaggy, quixotic road movie and Malickian spiritual ponderance, gazing at the celestial patterns above while also too drunk on them to see the shallowness of their promise.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
3 Sep. 2025
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There’s a quixotic gallantry to appealing to a saner conservative and looking ahead to a post-Trump American politics.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
14 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Idealist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/idealist. Accessed 13 Sep. 2025.
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