illiberal

illiberal

adjective

Definition of ILLIBERAL

1

not broad or open in views or opinions <an illiberal society that viewed any artistic depiction of the nude as inherently indecent>

Synonyms illiberal, insular, Lilliputian, little, narrow-minded, parochial, petty, picayune, provincial, sectarian, small, small-minded

Related Words inflexible, ironbound, obdurate, obstinate, rigid, set, stubborn, unyielding, wrongheaded; bigoted, intolerant; biased, discriminating, discriminatory, jaundiced, one-sided, partial, partisan, prejudiced; brass bound, hidebound, old-fashioned, reactionary, stodgy, straitlaced (or straightlaced), stuffy; dogmatic (also dogmatical), opinionated, opinionative; limited; hick, unsophisticated

Near Antonyms impartial, nonpartisan, objective, unbiased, unprejudiced; freethinking

Antonyms broad-minded, catholic, cosmopolitan, liberal, open, open-minded, receptive, tolerant

2

unwilling to grant other people social rights or to accept other viewpoints <some of the more illiberal residents were opposed to having a hospice for AIDS patients in the neighborhood>

Synonyms bigoted, illiberal, narrow, narrow-minded, prejudiced, small-minded

Related Words conservative, hidebound, old-fashioned, reactionary; blindfolded, blinkered, insular, parochial, provincial; biased, one-sided, partial, partisan

Near Antonyms extreme, progressive, radical; impartial, objective, unbiased

Antonyms broad-minded, liberal, open-minded, tolerant, unprejudiced

archaic

lacking in refinement or good taste <people who had been scorned as illiberal because they were poor>

Synonyms common, crass, crude, gross, ill-bred, illiberal [archaic], incult, insensible, low, lowbred, lowbrow, raffish, rough, rough-hewn, roughneck, rude, rugged, tasteless, uncouth, uncultivated, uncultured, unpolished, unrefined, vulgar

Related Words boorish, churlish, cloddish, clownish, loutish, ungentlemanly; clumsy, lubberly, lumpish, oafish; inconsiderate, indelicate, insensitive, thoughtless; countrified (also countryfied), provincial, rustic (also rustical), unsophisticated; graceless, inelegant, tacky; animallike, barbaric, barbarous, uncivilized; mannerless, unmannered, unmannerly

Near Antonyms aristocratic, courtly, patrician; elegant, graceful, restrained; considerate, gracious, sensitive, thoughtful; citified, sophisticated, urbane

Antonyms civilized, cultivated, cultured, genteel, polished, refined, smooth, tasteful, ultrarefined, well-bred