illiberal

adjective

il·​lib·​er·​al (ˌ)i(l)-ˈli-b(ə-)rəl 

: not liberal: such as

a

: opposed to political liberalism

especially : restricting individual rights and freedoms

Her latest book … looks at how illiberal leaders use propaganda, corruption, violence and machismo …

—University of Hawaii

Authoritarian or hybrid regimes, no matter how illiberal, will still be treated as legitimate if they can provide security for their subjects and spark economic growth.

—Robert D. Kaplan

With the coming of the cold war, many Westerners were struck by the resemblance of Stalin's Russia to Hitler's Germany. Both were illiberal, highly centralized regimes that seemed to fit into the general designation of totalitarian states.

—Donald Kagan

b

: not broad-minded : bigoted

… used the migrant crisis to stir up racist, illiberal views.

—Eoin O'Malley

c

archaic : not generous : stingy

… Theobald felt quite good-natured, and sent … even more soup and wine than her usual not illiberal allowance.

—Samuel Butler

d

archaic : lacking culture and refinement

The tall gentleman came to meet her, looking very rigid and grave. But it was a rigidity that had no illiberal meaning.

—Henry James

Drunkenness, the most illiberal … of our vices, was sometimes capable, in a less civilized state of mankind, of occasioning a battle, a war, or a revolution.

—Edward Gibbon

e

archaic : lacking or permitting a lack of a liberal arts education

illiberal occupations

illiberality

(ˌ)i(l)-ˌli-bə-ˈra-lə-tē 

noun

plural illiberalities

illiberally

(ˌ)i(l)-ˈli-b(ə-)rə-lē 

adverb

illiberalness

(ˌ)i(l)-ˈli-b(ə-)rəl-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• parochial
• small
• petty
• narrow
• sectarian
• insular

Examples of illiberal in a Sentence

an illiberal attitude toward sex

an illiberal society that viewed any artistic depiction of the nude as inherently indecent

Recent Examples on the Web

Nowhere has the strength of Brazil’s judiciary been more evident than in the courts’ bold confrontation of Bolsonaro and his illiberal agenda. —Omar G. Encarnación, Foreign Affairs, 29 Sep. 2025

Left-wing antisemitism, which cast Jews as greedy capitalists, existed as well, especially in France, but Jew-baiting remained primarily a right-wing pursuit, the work of illiberal nativists who saw a tiny minority as polluting the purity of their racial or religious communities. —Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

Each has talked up and acted upon the notion that universities’ illiberal and often hypocritical approaches to issues concerning free speech and antisemitism need to change. —David Mark, The Washington Examiner, 19 Sep. 2025

National conservatism is notable for being a particularly illiberal ideology in many ways, one of which is the rejection of individualism. —Rafael Perez, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French or Latin; Middle French, from Latin illiberalis ignoble, stingy, from Latin in- + liberalis liberal

First Known Use

1588, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for illiberal

• liberal
• neoliberal