populist

pop·u·list | \ ˈpä-pyə-list

How to pronounce populist (audio)

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Definition of populist

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a member of a political party claiming to represent the common people especially, often capitalized : a member of a U.S. political party formed in 1891 primarily to represent agrarian interests and to advocate the free coinage of silver and government control of monopolies

2 : a believer in the rights, wisdom, or virtues of the common people

populist

Definition of populist (Entry 2 of 2)

1 often capitalized : of, relating to, or characterized by populism

2a : popular sense 1

b : popular sense 2

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Examples of populist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun And what prevents that demonstration are not the bugbears of national populists: international treaties, the EU, or an influx of foreigners. — Adam Tooze, The New York Review of Books, "How ‘Big Law’ Makes Big Money," 28 Jan. 2020 Many of the successful candidates were affiliated with the Tea Party movement—an informal grouping of anti-tax populists who ran on a platform of reduced government spending. — Natasha Frost, Quartz, "A decade ago, the US was promised high-speed rail—so where is it?," 27 Dec. 2019 In one episode, in 133 B.C., Tiberius Gracchus, one of the early populists of the republic, and hundreds of his followers were killed by a mob, led by members of the Roman Senate. — Zachary Karabell, Twin Cities, "Zachary Karabell: Stop saying America’s problems are like ancient Rome’s decline," 26 Sep. 2019 In France, the populist Yellow Vest movement has been accused of antisemitic elements as well. — Todd Spangler, Detroit Free Press, "With antisemitism on the rise, criticism of Israel fuels political charges of hate," 11 July 2019 In Europe, Trump cheers on far-right populist nationalist leaders – including a recent White House visitor, Hungary’s Viktor Orban — who share the president’s impatience with press freedom and a free judiciary. — Trudy Rubin, The Mercury News, "Rubin: Trump’s nationalism vs. Macron’s plea for a strong alliance," 11 June 2019 Italy’s populist leaders are discussing paying public-sector suppliers with IOUs instead of money, a step that Italian euroskeptics have proposed as the starting point for a new currency in case Italy has to leave Europe’s currency union. — Giovanni Legorano, WSJ, "Italy, Short of Euros, Flirts With a Different Way to Pay," 10 June 2019 Image Bernd Ondruch, a hedge fund executive, attended a conference in Rome last year put on by Italy’s populist Five Star Movement. — New York Times, "Betting on Crisis, Hedge Funds Short Italian Bonds," 7 June 2018 Politics in peripheral Europe are also back in the spotlight after Italy’s populist leaders sealed a coalition agreement and a plan for reforms seen as a challenge to the European Union establishment. — Joe Easton And Jeremy Herron, BostonGlobe.com, "US stocks retreat, treasuries rise with dollar," 18 May 2018 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective In the fall of 2018, voters elected President Jair Bolsonaro, a populist ex-military politician determined to pillage the Amazon. — Elizabeth Barber, The New Yorker, "A Nun’s Journey in the Amazon," 17 Feb. 2020 Farage’s shock win in the 2016 referendum heralded a surge in support for populist politicians. — Rob Crilly, Washington Examiner, "Nigel Farage: Brexit sets stage for Trump victory, just as it did in 2016," 3 Feb. 2020 Its passage marks the latest political victory for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a strident nationalist in the mold of other right-leaning populist politicians around the globe. — BostonGlobe.com, "NEW DELHI — Lawmakers in India enacted a fundamental change to its citizenship law to include religion as a criterion for nationality for the first time, deepening concerns that a country founded on secular ideals is becoming a Hindu state that treats Muslims as second-class citizens.," 12 Dec. 2019 In Zimbabwe and South Africa white farmers owned a far greater share of the best land, making them a visible sign of racial inequality and historical injustice, as well as an easy target for populist politicians. — The Economist, "A row over who owns Kenya’s land is making life hard for foreign firms," 21 Nov. 2019 Right-wing populist politicians including Italy's Matteo Salvini, who has promoted a bill removing mandatory vaccination for children, have also been influential in pulling the public away from scientific orthodoxy. — Jessie Yeung, CNN, "Measles wipe immune system's memory of other illnesses, studies find," 1 Nov. 2019 More and more countries have woken up to this fact, despite the alarming rollback of reproductive rights in some countries, like the United States or Poland, driven by anti-choice groups and supported by populist politicians. — Uma Mishra-newbery, Time, "Abortion Bans Strip People of Their Human Rights. Here's Why We Must Stand In Solidarity Against Them," 27 Sep. 2019 Argentinian assets plummeted in price today after Alberto Fernández, a leftwing populist opposition politician, soundly defeated rightwing incumbent president Mauricio Macri in a nationwide primary election over the weekend. — Matthew De Silva, Quartz, "Investors may regret buying those 100-year bonds from Argentina," 12 Aug. 2019 Long-running online blood feuds with the brassy star of Beaches and the editor of a magazine for and about rich people are not the sort of behavior ordinarily associated with populist politicians. — David Roth, The New Republic, "Making sense of Donald Trump's petulant reign," 12 June 2019

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

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Last Updated

21 Feb 2020

Cite this Entry

“Populist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/populist. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.

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