Jacobin

noun

Jac·​o·​bin ˈja-kə-bən 

1

: dominican

2

[French, from Jacobin Dominican; from the group's founding in the Dominican convent in Paris] : a member of an extremist or radical political group

especially : a member of such a group advocating egalitarian democracy and engaging in terrorist activities during the French Revolution of 1789

Jacobinic

ˌja-kə-ˈbi-nik 

adjective

or Jacobinical

ˌja-kə-ˈbi-ni-kəl 

Jacobinism

ˈja-kə-bə-ˌni-zəm 

noun

Examples of Jacobin in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

McAlevey, who was wearing jeans, puffy purple shoes, and a sleeveless, peach blouse, took the stage, along with her interviewer, the Jacobin editor Micah Uetricht. —Eleni Schirmer, The New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2023

Young protesters were educating themselves, joining socialist reading groups organized by Jacobin, the new socialist intellectual organ, and preparing for what might come next. —Ross Barkan, The New Republic, 3 Aug. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French jacopin, from Medieval Latin Jacobinus, from Late Latin Jacobus (St. James); from the location of the first Dominican convent in the street of St. James, Paris

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1