fascist

1 of 2

noun

fas·​cist ˈfa-shist 

also ˈfa-sist

plural fascists

1

or Fascist plural Fascists : a person who advocates or works to further the aims of fascism : an adherent of or participant in a populist political philosophy, movement, or regime that exalts nation and often race above the individual, that is associated with a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, and that is characterized by severe economic and social regimentation and forcible suppression of opposition

Dogmatism inevitably leads not to utopia, as Marxists and fascists alike have claimed, but to totalitarian repression.

—John Horgan

The continual strikes staged by the Socialists and Communists in 1919 and 1920 paved the way for the Fascists.

—Alexander Stille

2

: a person who exercises or attempts to exercise strong dictatorial control over others

—often used informally in an exaggerated way

For, as with school-children, there is something of the fascist in most office workers: they glorify order and the discipline that enforces it, even when that discipline is arbitrarily or unjustly meted out.

—Mark Jones

Just as there are food fascists who would outlaw french fries and force everyone to breakfast on bran muffins, there are fishing fascists who despise the use of live bait.

—George Will

fascist

2 of 2

adjective

1

or Fascist : advocating or working to further the aims of fascism

a fascist leader/state

fascist movements

For those too young to get the reference, Vichy was the collaborationist regime that governed occupied France during World War II—fascist Frenchmen who did the dirty work for the Germans.

—William Greider

2

: exercising or attempting to exercise dictatorial control over others : behaving in an oppressive and intolerant manner

… they argued that if behavior modification were to work on humans, it would be a morally repugnant and even fascist method of forcing people to toe an official line.

—David H. Freedman

3

: expressing or demonstrating support for fascism

a fascist salute

fascist rhetoric

Examples of fascist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Portofiro and the baroque universe surrounding it—communists on-world, techno-fascists offplanet, and all manner of augmentoids and spooks in the immaterial planes between—can make for a dizzying read. —Alex James Kane, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026

To make matters worse, Sidious took Maul under his wing as his apprentice at a very young age (how young depends on the story being told), teaching him all about the dark side of the Force and how to become a fascist in 10 easy steps. —Sergio Pereira, Space.com, 19 May 2026

Employing a cast of non-professional locals, the film playfully interrogates the brutal but bungled occupation while also allowing its actors — many of whom are descendants of the fascists’ victims — to reinterpret and reclaim a chapter in their city’s past. —Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 15 May 2026

Fascists haven’t gone away in the world. —Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 13 May 2026

But right now Congress is being run by power-hungry fascists. —Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026

Trump’s second term has proved so radical that officials from his first Administration—including a former chief of staff and a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff—have referred to him as a fascist. —Peter Slevin, New Yorker, 4 May 2026

In other words, the fascists told a more riveting story. —Literary Hub, 27 Apr. 2026

Critics called the manifesto fascist. —Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 25 Apr. 2026

Adjective

This isn’t always bad, or creatively limiting—the prequel series Andor managed to carve a bold new direction for Star Wars by taking the idea of a fascist Empire seriously. —Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 25 May 2026

Emmanuel Marre won best screenplay for A Man of His Time, his period drama, based on the life of his own great-grandfather, an author and engineer who chose to work for the fascist Vichy regime. —Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 23 May 2026

In 1992, Alessandra ran for parliament as member of Italy's neo-fascist Italian Social Movement (MSI), according to EuroNews. —Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 21 May 2026

The movie, set in Spain in 1944, is both an intoxicating work of fantasy and a grim parable of political rebellion, and its insights into the cruelties and vulnerabilities of fascist power remain undimmed. —Justin Chang, New Yorker, 18 May 2026

The interesting thing about Croatia, which lies along the Adriatic Sea across from Italy, is that during World War II Croatia was a pro Hitler, pro-Nazi brutal fascist state controlled by the Ustase, who were as bad as the Nazis. —Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 14 May 2026

The filmmaker said the movie, about a young girl and fascist captain in 1940s Spain, remains timely. —ABC News, 12 May 2026

The film was shot in 2019, 100 years after the fascist occupation of Fiume in 1919 by Gabriele D’Annunzio. —Leo Barraclough, Variety, 8 May 2026

Obviously, the German pavilion is a fascist building. —Pablo Larios, Artforum, 6 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from Italian fascista, from fascio "bundle, group" + -ista -ist entry 1 — more at fascism

Adjective

derivative of fascist entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1919, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1921, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing fascist

• anti-fascist
• pre-fascist

Rhymes for fascist

• antifascist