activism

noun

ac·​tiv·​ism ˈak-ti-ˌvi-zəm 

: a doctrine or practice that emphasizes direct vigorous action especially in support of or opposition to one side of a controversial issue

political activism

environmental activism

Examples of activism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Yuileta Lopez, a teen growing up in Texas, decides to turn her anger and outrage into activism. —Amber McBride, Literary Hub, 5 Nov. 2025

Mamdani, whose past included vocal activism on behalf of Palestinian issues that included comments many New York Jews found offensive, will be New York’s first Muslim mayor. —Alex J. Rouhandeh, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025

Competition from Chinese rivals, Tesla’s aging lineup, and a backlash against CEO Elon Musk’s political activism, are behind the decline, Reuters reported. —Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2025

Breakthrough producer nominations go to Wyn Baptiste for activism documentary Shoot the People, Charlotte Knowles for cross-border doc Palestine Comedy Club, Joann Kushner for screenlife heist movie LifeHack and Dhiraj Mahey for social-realist coming-of-age drama Ish. —Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 3 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Aktivismus, from aktiv active entry 1 + -ismus -ism

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for activism

• autism
• fascism
• racism
• sikhism
• statism
• sufism
• thomism
• tourism
• tropism
• abolitionism
• aldosteronism
• americanism