absurdism

noun

ab·​surd·​ism əb-ˈsər-ˌdi-zəm  -ˈzər- 

: a philosophy based on the belief that the universe is irrational and meaningless and that the search for order brings the individual into conflict with the universe compare existentialism

Examples of absurdism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The movie is an epic series of harrumphs and harangues, propelled from room to room—and, in time, out into the world beyond the estate—by a spirit of impudent absurdism and corrosive cynicism which seems to emanate from Digger himself. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026

Such a counterintuitive deployment of the strictest logic inevitably starts to incline toward absurdism. — Artforum, 28 Sep. 2026

There is no noise of a breaking string echoing in the distance — the stage direction that pushed Chekhov’s final dramatic landscape toward Beckettian absurdism before Beckett was born. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026

Our political system vacillates between absurdism and horror. — Chloe Benjamain, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

absurd entry 1 + -ism (probably after French absurdisme)

First Known Use

1946, in the meaning defined above