utopianism

noun

uto·​pi·​an·​ism yu̇-ˈtō-pē-ə-ˌni-zəm How to pronounce utopianism (audio)
1
: a utopian idea or theory
2
often capitalized : the body of ideas, views, or aims of a utopian

Examples of utopianism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web In the annals of irresponsible utopianism, few names stand out like that of Bronson Alcott. Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 10 Nov. 2023 By the nineteen-thirties, converting facts into data to be read by machines married the centuries-long quest for universal knowledge to twentieth-century technological utopianism. Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023 Moscow’s alarm over the hegemonic role America had assigned itself was intensified by what could fairly be characterized as the bellicose utopianism demonstrated by Washington’s series of regime-change wars. Matthew Gavin Frank, Harper's Magazine, 3 May 2023 The book is now seen as one of the foundational texts of realism, although Carr described it more as a correction of the increasingly influential and, in his view, naive utopianism that devised schemes for world government without regard for the abiding importance of national interest. Quincy Wright, Foreign Affairs, 6 Sep. 2022 Did anyone believe this utopianism? James McElroy, Washington Examiner, 31 Dec. 2020 The work evokes a particular subgenre of West Coast utopianism, one that recalls the back-to-the-land movement and Stewart Brand’s Whole Earth Catalog, which envisioned the tools of the American industrial complex repurposed to bring about a more equitable and ecologically sustainable world. Meghan O'Gieblyn, Wired, 24 Aug. 2021 The age of data is associated with late capitalism, authoritarianism, techno-utopianism, and a discipline known as data science, which has lately been the top of the top hat, the spit shine on the buckled shoe, the whir of the whizziest Tesla. Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023 Neither spiritual nor social utopianism fared well in the 20th century. Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 15 Feb. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'utopianism.' 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

1649, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of utopianism was in 1649

Dictionary Entries Near utopianism

Cite this Entry

“Utopianism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/utopianism. Accessed 11 Dec. 2023.

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