as in conservative
tending to favor established ideas, conditions, or institutions
reactionary guardians of proper English usage invariably regard every new coinage that comes along as a nonword
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in rightist
a person whose political beliefs are centered on tradition and keeping things the way they are
reactionaries tried to stop the passage of the legislation extending civil rights
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fogey
a person with old-fashioned ideas
a reactionary in the nation's ongoing culture war, she seems to believe that watching any TV at all will rot your brain
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reactionary
Scott Meslow, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
Teams take pride in removing emotion from decisions and loathe making moves that can be interpreted as reactionary.
—Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025
This reactionary strategy keeps companies mired in the past, unable to leverage real-time analytics, artificial intelligence and automation.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
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Being a safe and smart solo traveler means looking after my entire well-being in a preventative way, not just a reactionary way.
—Kelsey Glennon, Travel + Leisure, 30 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reactionary
Adjective
For Bailey — who faced an overwhelming, toxic backlash from a contingent of reactionary gamers for her role The Last of Us Part II — adding scenes that brace the audience for Joel’s death is a wise choice.
—Scott Meslow, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
Teams take pride in removing emotion from decisions and loathe making moves that can be interpreted as reactionary.
—Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025
This reactionary strategy keeps companies mired in the past, unable to leverage real-time analytics, artificial intelligence and automation.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
Vitamin C + Collagen packets $37 $31 at Amazon
Being a safe and smart solo traveler means looking after my entire well-being in a preventative way, not just a reactionary way.
—Kelsey Glennon, Travel + Leisure, 30 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reactionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reactionary
Adjective
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But Chase Strangio, who runs the ACLU's LGBTQ and HIV Project, says any shift is because conservative politicians and groups have flooded voters with messaging that says transgender people are a threat.—
Sam Gringlas,
NPR,
10 May 2025
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Like Palace, Eze’s conservative approach should not be mistaken as passive.—
Conor O'Neill,
New York Times,
10 May 2025
Adjective
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To stay competitive as water stress deepens across traditional and emerging production regions, the industry must decouple manufacturing from water use.—
Ken Katz,
Sourcing Journal,
5 May 2025
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For him, achieving a red carpet-worthy look is about doing your research, diving into traditional braid styles for different ceremonies, and giving credit to where that inspiration came from.—
Kiana Murden,
Vogue,
4 May 2025
Noun
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Abel, a veteran executive in the company, should become Berkshire Hathaway's chief executive at the end of the year, Buffett said.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
4 May 2025
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Comedy veteran Short has been romantically linked to three-time Oscar winner Streep in real life since last year.—
Karu F. Daniels,
New York Daily News,
3 May 2025
Adjective
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But there should be no such wall—even in the most orthodox capitalist system.—
Paul Laudicina,
Forbes.com,
25 Apr. 2025
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Historian William Dalrymple traces the current sectarian divisions to the reign of Emperor Aurangzeb, who shattered the empire’s religious pluralism by trying to impose orthodox Islam on the populace.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
24 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reactionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reactionary. Accessed 14 May. 2025.
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