intellectualism

play

noun in·tel·lec·tu·al·ism \ ˌin-tə-ˈlek-chə-wə-ˌli-zəm , -chə-ˌli- , -shwə-ˌli- , -chü(-ə)-ˌli- \

Definition of intellectualism

:devotion to the exercise of intellect or to intellectual pursuits

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intellectualist

play \ˌin-tə-ˈlek-chə-wə-list, -chə-list, -shwə-list, -chü(-ə)-list\ noun or adjective

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intellectualistic

play \ˌin-tə-ˌlek-chə-wə-ˈli-stik, -chə-ˈli-, -shwə-ˈli-, -chü(-ə)-ˈli-\ adjective

Recent Examples of intellectualism from the Web

When people align themselves with ahistorical assumptions and aggressive anti-intellectualism, academia itself becomes alarming.

— lincoln anthony blades, Teen Vogue, "Colleges and Universities are Becoming Less White, and Republicans Like Them Less," 20 July 2017
The current threat to intellectualism, today’s doomsayers maintain, is precisely that matters of common interest are in such short supply.

— elizabeth mitchell, Smithsonian, "What Happened to America’s Public Intellectuals?," 27 June 2017
Hackett is an outgoing people person and a technology geek who likes to attend TED Talks, which are meccas for technology entrepreneurs and design trendsetters but are sometimes mocked as self-important displays of intellectualism.

— brent snavely, USA TODAY, "Ford's new CEO plans action blitz in first 100 days," 18 June 2017
Some musicians might have felt constrained by Dr. Gossett’s intellectualism.

— emily langer, Washington Post, "Philip Gossett, musical sleuth who revived forgotten operas, dies at 75," 16 June 2017
The result is a take-no-prisoners battle between the dark forces of anti-intellectualism and the shining light of a child’s lust for learning — which makes this show unexpectedly timely and topical.

— punch shaw, star-telegram.com, "‘Matilda’ brings Roald Dahl’s story to glorious life," 15 June 2017
Widespread ignorance of geography is a particularly severe symptom of the anti-intellectualism that pervades American life.

— jack holmes, Esquire, "No, Seriously, Do You Know Where North Korea Is?," 15 May 2017
But on many other occasions, Smith's plays were about internationally famous giants of intellectualism and thought leadership.

— chris jones, chicagotribune.com, "'Objects in the Mirror': Charles Smith writes about the ghosts of Liberia," 4 May 2017
Anti-intellectualism – this glorification of ignorance and encouraging the very worst of people’s characters is so horrible and upsetting to me.

— courtney devores, charlotteobserver, "6 questions for actor Alan Cumming," 26 Apr. 2017

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