academicism

noun

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ac·a·dem·i·cism | \ ˌa-kə-ˈde-mə-ˌsi-zəm

variants: or less commonly academism \ ə-ˈka-də-ˌmi-zəm

Definition of academicism

1 : the doctrines of Plato's Academy specifically : the skeptical doctrines of the later Academy holding that nothing can be known — compare pyrrhonism

2 : a formal academic quality (as in art or music)

3 : purely speculative thoughts and attitudes

Examples of academicism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But three paintings from after 1900 stand out for their size and ambition, if also their increasing academicism. — Roberta Smith, New York Times, "When He Was Good, He Was Breathtaking," 6 Jan. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'academicism.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.