abolitionist

1 of 2

noun

ab·​o·​li·​tion·​ist ˌa-bə-ˈli-shə-nist 

plural abolitionists

: a person who wants to stop or abolish slavery : an advocate of abolition

Before going to England I had had no proper conception of the deep interest displayed by the abolitionists of England in the cause of freedom, nor did I realize the amount of substantial help given by them.

—Booker T. Washington

On the spectrum of abhorrent business practices, buying and selling humans, especially children, remains the gold standard. Yet modern abolitionists say it happens all the time.

—Belinda Luscombe

While with him at an antislavery convention in London, which shocked her by barring women as delegates, she found her ideal model in another delegate, Lucretia Mott, the noted Quaker abolitionist and feminist.

—Milton Rugoff

abolitionist

2 of 2

adjective

: of, relating to, or supporting abolitionists or abolitionism : advocating the end of slavery

abolitionist writings

… the virulence of public reaction to antislavery activity in the East appears to have been a reason for the deployment of abolitionist resources and energies into the Middle West.

—Marilynne Robinson

… he was genuinely concerned with the poor, and an aggressive supporter of abolitionist causes and women's education.

—Jesse Sheidlower

Examples of abolitionist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Woodson chose the second week in February for the observance to coincide with the birthdays of abolitionist and civil rights leader Frederick Douglass (Feb. 14) and U.S. President Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12). —Cheryl V. Jackson, IndyStar, 2 July 2025

Norton, who shared his grandfather’s abolitionist beliefs and helped found the Connecticut Anti-Slavery Society, inherited the land when his grandfather died in 1824. —James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 29 June 2025

Adjective

In a letter home, Sam complained that the East was too ethnic, too abolitionist, and too dark for his taste. —Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025

It was all meant to honor the spirit of the homeless camps, which, after George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, had adopted an abolitionist outlook. —Wes Enzinna, Harper’s Magazine , 5 Jan. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1791, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1833, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for abolitionist

• exhibitionist
• prohibitionist
• nutritionist

Kids Definition

abolitionist

noun

ab·​o·​li·​tion·​ist

ab-ə-ˈlish-(ə-)nəst

: a person who is in favor of abolishing especially slavery

abolitionism

-ˈlish-ə-ˌniz-əm

noun