environmentalist

noun

en·​vi·​ron·​men·​tal·​ist in-ˌvī-rə(n)-ˈmen-tə-ləst 

-ˌvī(-ə)r(n)-

plural environmentalists

: an advocate of environmentalism : a person who is focused on the preservation, restoration, and improvement of the natural environment

While dams have been touted in the name of water conservation and clean, renewable energy, environmentalists have long challenged the claim that dams are "green" technology. The deleterious ecological impacts of dams, they insist, have been profound.

—Patrick Joseph

Meanwhile, environmentalists have responded that climate change and habitat loss due to development should require builders to think even more carefully about their projects.

—Emma Cotton et al.

Examples of environmentalist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Two weeks ago, the prominent environmentalist and education activist Sonam Wangchuk joined them and launched a hunger strike. — Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 20 July 2026

Another environmentalist whose driving records were accessed is Volusia County resident Chuck O’Neal, a founder of Speak up Wekiva. — Jeffrey Schweers, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 July 2026

But environmentalists say this pristine location has already been threatened by the arrival of bulldozers along the beach, presumably to begin work on the project. — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 16 July 2026

The Bee’s Sharon Bernstein has been covering this issue, including award-winning work documenting the strain on law enforcement and the friction between ranchers and environmentalists. — Scott Lebar. Story Produced With Ai Assistance, Sacbee.com, 15 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1903, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for environmentalist

• experimentalist
• fundamentalist
• instrumentalist
• orientalist
• transcendentalist
• gentlest

Kids Definition

environmentalist

noun

en·​vi·​ron·​men·​tal·​ist -ˌvī-rən-ˈment-ᵊl-əst 

-ˌvī(-ə)rn-

: a person concerned about environmental quality and especially with controlling pollution

Medical Definition

environmentalist

noun

en·​vi·​ron·​men·​tal·​ist -ᵊl-əst 

1

: an advocate of environmentalism

2

: one concerned about environmental quality especially of the human environment with respect to the control of pollution