social conservatism

noun

: a political philosophy stressing the importance of preserving traditional social mores, family and gender roles, and sexual morality (as by supporting legislation that is aimed at prohibiting abortion, restricting legal marriage to unions of one man and one woman, barring the legal recognition of the gender identity of transgender people, and banning pornography)

The GOP has kept the social conservatism that made Reagan the preferred candidate for evangelical Christians—a constituency that now dominates many Republican primaries. That's been clear throughout the campaign, as the candidates have sparred over how far to go to impose national bans on abortion, a goal sought by many Republican primary voters but opposed by a majority of Americans.

—David Lauter and Seema Mehta

Many governments … have implemented and continue to maintain exclusionary laws because of public support for social conservatism.

—Chad de Guzman

social conservative noun

plural social conservatives

Parry was a social conservative who expected Marian to keep house and tend their offspring.

—Jo Livingstone

… a social conservative who strongly backed a 2016 law that required people to use public bathrooms corresponding to the gender on their birth certificates.

—Trip Gabriel

The party has been rife with factions, often pitting social conservatives against those who care most about business and economics …

—Anthony Man

Examples of social conservatism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Buckley’s collaboration with Frank Meyer blended economic and social conservatism, which shaped politics from the 1960s to the 1980s, including Ronald Reagan’s presidency. —Amy Delaura, The Washington Examiner, 20 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1974, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for social conservatism

• abolitionism
• aldosteronism
• americanism
• anticommunism
• antisemitism
• antiterrorism
• bioterrorism
• colloquialism
• colonialism
• consequentialism
• contextualism
• conventionalism