BARBARISM Synonyms: 32 Similar and Opposite Words

barbarism

noun

Definition of barbarism

as in philistinism

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Recent Examples of barbarism Netflix snagged the rights to this British four-episode adaptation of the classic William Golding novel about a group of schoolboys stranded on a remote island who build their own society, only to descend into barbarism and violence. — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 25 Apr. 2026 But the vast majority of us prefer civilization over barbarism, and there’s a value to that. — Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2026 God willing, this legal reckoning will come before Republicans descend into barbarism on the scale of their ideological forebears. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026 What drew me to the story was that gesture of humanity in the midst of barbarism. — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 18 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for barbarism

Recent Examples of Synonyms for barbarism

Noun

Fascism lives in the upside-down; professional gaslighting features heavily amongst its weaponry, along with the blinking philistinism of the soulless.

— Sara Holdren, Vulture, 14 June 2026
Despite such official philistinism, Proust had already left an enduring mark on Irish letters and would remain a source of literary inspiration for the nation’s writers into the twenty-first century.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Feb. 2026

Definition of philistinism

Noun

There’s no danger of spontaneous mass illiteracy, but the complex cognitive skills that reading fosters start to degrade.

— Rose Horowitch, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026
And now creative events like the various fair demonstrations and exhibits bring the problem of illiteracy into public spaces and help remove the stigma surrounding it.

— Catharine Kaufman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 May 2026

Definition of illiteracy

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barbaric

barbarism

barbarity

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“Barbarism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barbarism. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of barbarism

noun

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