illiberalism
noun
il·lib·er·al·ism
(ˌ)i(l)-ˈli-b(ə-)rə-ˌli-zəm 
: opposition to or lack of liberalism
Synonyms
Examples of illiberalism in a Sentence
a woman who fails to see that her unexamined faith in political liberalism actually makes her guilty of illiberalism
Recent Examples on the Web
The other thing no one was talking about: Modi’s questionable human rights record and India’s slide into illiberalism.
—
Zoe Glasser, Washington Post, 23 June 2023
As Netanyahu pushes Israel toward illiberalism, some believe Washington should cut its close ties with the state, including rethinking military aid to Israel, as New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof argued last week.
—Natan Sachs, Foreign Affairs, 28 July 2023
Sign up While this commitment to deconstruction remains, conservatives’ attitude toward the administrative has evolved in complex ways that largely track with the conservative movement’s broader slide toward illiberalism.
—James Goodwin, The New Republic, 30 Aug. 2023
But the country’s tilt toward illiberalism is at odds with the kind of message Biden has embraced during his presidency about the importance of proving that democracy is a preferable model to the more autocratic principles espoused by foes such as China and Russia.
—Toluse Olorunnipa, Ellen Nakashima, Gerry Shih and Abigail Hauslohner, The Washington Post, Anchorage Daily News, 22 June 2023
That troubling tilt toward illiberalism is the unspoken tension in the Washington visit.
—Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 21 June 2023
From indulging in absolute gutter rhetoric to embracing rank illiberalism to promoting unhinged conspiracy theories, Trump and his press critics tend to have more in common than not.
—Becket Adams, National Review, 19 Mar. 2023
Yet Biden no longer criticizes Poland’s growing illiberalism.
—Foreign Affairs, 24 July 2023
In recent years, Putin has even succeeded in exporting his particular brand of illiberalism to, among others, the National Front, in France; the British National Party; the Jobbik movement, in Hungary; Golden Dawn, in Greece; and the right wing of the Republican Party.
—David Remnick, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2022
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Zoe Glasser, Washington Post, 23 June 2023
As Netanyahu pushes Israel toward illiberalism, some believe Washington should cut its close ties with the state, including rethinking military aid to Israel, as New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof argued last week.
—Natan Sachs, Foreign Affairs, 28 July 2023
Sign up While this commitment to deconstruction remains, conservatives’ attitude toward the administrative has evolved in complex ways that largely track with the conservative movement’s broader slide toward illiberalism.
—James Goodwin, The New Republic, 30 Aug. 2023
But the country’s tilt toward illiberalism is at odds with the kind of message Biden has embraced during his presidency about the importance of proving that democracy is a preferable model to the more autocratic principles espoused by foes such as China and Russia.
—Toluse Olorunnipa, Ellen Nakashima, Gerry Shih and Abigail Hauslohner, The Washington Post, Anchorage Daily News, 22 June 2023
That troubling tilt toward illiberalism is the unspoken tension in the Washington visit.
—Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 21 June 2023
From indulging in absolute gutter rhetoric to embracing rank illiberalism to promoting unhinged conspiracy theories, Trump and his press critics tend to have more in common than not.
—Becket Adams, National Review, 19 Mar. 2023
Yet Biden no longer criticizes Poland’s growing illiberalism.
—Foreign Affairs, 24 July 2023
In recent years, Putin has even succeeded in exporting his particular brand of illiberalism to, among others, the National Front, in France; the British National Party; the Jobbik movement, in Hungary; Golden Dawn, in Greece; and the right wing of the Republican Party.
—David Remnick, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2022
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'illiberalism.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1839, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near illiberalism
Cite this Entry
“Illiberalism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/illiberalism. Accessed 4 Dec. 2023.
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