modernism
noun
mod·ern·ism
ˈmä-dər-ˌni-zəm 
1
: a practice, usage, or expression peculiar to modern times
such modernisms as "blog," "bromance," and "steampunk"
2
often capitalized
: a tendency in theology to accommodate traditional religious teaching to contemporary thought and especially to devalue supernatural elements
3
: modern artistic or literary philosophy and practice
especially
: a self-conscious break with the past and a search for new forms of expression
extols the … modernism that laid the foundation of all twentieth-century design —
Jeffrey Simpson
Jeffrey Simpson Examples of modernism in a Sentence
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The images’ long durations fuse with the buildings’ cool serenity, making a bold visual statement about the self-consciously contemplative aesthetic of modernism itself.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 20 June 2025
Amid the broader sociopolitical tensions and rising revolutionary fervor, the Group synthesized the concerns of a vast swathe of artists by interpreting the abstraction of Western modernism through aesthetics drawn from Islamic and Mesopotamian cultures into various styles.
—Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 20 June 2025
Cuban composer Tania León added dollops of exciting modernism.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2025
There’s the distinct look and feel, a kind of darkly Gothic maximalist modernism, contrasting neon, shadows and smoke.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 7 June 2025
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Richard Brody, New Yorker, 20 June 2025
Amid the broader sociopolitical tensions and rising revolutionary fervor, the Group synthesized the concerns of a vast swathe of artists by interpreting the abstraction of Western modernism through aesthetics drawn from Islamic and Mesopotamian cultures into various styles.
—Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 20 June 2025
Cuban composer Tania León added dollops of exciting modernism.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2025
There’s the distinct look and feel, a kind of darkly Gothic maximalist modernism, contrasting neon, shadows and smoke.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 7 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for modernism
Cite this Entry
“Modernism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/modernism. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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