extremist 1 of 2

Definition of extremistnext
as in radical
being very far from the center of public opinion their extremist views on religious issues set them apart from the rest of the community

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

extremist

2 of 2

noun

as in revolutionary
a person who favors rapid and sweeping changes especially in laws and methods of government extremists wanted to do away with everything, even though they had no thought-out plan for what to do afterwards

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of extremist
Adjective
Police are also looking into whether the suspect had any links to extremist groups or was working with anyone else, according to Kierwinski. — Somayeh Malekian, ABC News, 7 Nov. 2026 There was relative stability in Deir Jarir, a town of some 6,000 northeast of Ramallah, residents say, before extremist neighbors moved in and began descending weekly to terrorize the community below, with near-total impunity. — Suheir Hashimeh, Washington Post, 1 Nov. 2026 His top challenger, centrist former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, has left the door open to partnering with Arab parties under certain conditions, including their recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and of Hamas as an extremist group. — Cara Anna, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026 Paporakis had hundreds of rounds of rifle ammunition and a manifesto expressing white supremacist and extremist ideologies, police said. — Addison Wright, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 Lawyers for victims’ relatives claim that a group of extremist religious leaders in Saudi Arabia aided the hijackers. — Tom Winter, NBC news, 8 Oct. 2026 Netanyahu’s uncompromising stance helps placate his extremist coalition partners, justify permanent Israeli military control over Gaza, and indefinitely forestall any political accommodation with the Palestinians. — Khaled Elgindy, Foreign Affairs, 8 Oct. 2026 Frances’ data research has already turned up a bunch of similar cases, including the alarming statistic that 64 percent of Facebook users who recently joined extremist groups were directed to those organizations’ sites by the algorithm. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 7 Oct. 2026 The disclosure could deepen scrutiny of the security failures surrounding the flight after officials revealed the Omani co-pilot had previously been barred from flying in his home country over concerns about his extremist views. — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 4 Oct. 2026
Noun
Throughout the campaign, Holscher painted Masterson as an extremist whose election could have catastrophic consequences for public education, tax policy and civil rights. — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 4 Nov. 2026 Matsui has flooded the market with mailers and TV advertisements that portray Vang as an extremist, cite her practice of abstaining from the Pledge of Allegiance and attack Vang over her attendance record at the meetings of local government bodies. — Mathew Miranda, Sacbee.com, 3 Nov. 2026 Struck by the negative representations of Arabs in the media, Odeh was appointed regional director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, whose East Coast offices had been targeted by extremists in 1985. — Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026 For close to a decade, the livestreaming extremist has led a growing cohort of young men toward what’s looked like the insidious post-Trump future of the right. — Nathan Taylor Pemberton, Vanity Fair, 29 Oct. 2026 In Nice, far-right extremists fought with demonstrators downtown and 11 people were arrested, regional authorities said. — Thomas Adamson, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026 Outraged Jewish groups are now demanding organizers answer for bankrolling violent extremists. — Staff, FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026 The blueprint included the recruitment of mercenaries and exploiting the grievances of disaffected citizens, from religious fanatics and extremists to soccer fans. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 21 Oct. 2026 Labour lawmaker Jo Cox was shot and stabbed in 2016 by a far-right extremist, while Conservative David Amess was stabbed in 2021 by an attacker inspired by the militant Islamic State group. — ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extremist
Adjective
  • On Thursday, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who led a radical overhaul of the department's Civil Rights Division, also announced her departure.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Nov. 2026
  • The bar’s radical inclusiveness was part of why people cared about it—and part of what its owners were struggling to finance it.
    — Tara Knight, Bon Appetit Magazine, 6 Nov. 2026
Noun
  • Mao Zedong was a revolutionary who led the Communist Party during its crucial early days, winning a civil war against the ruling Nationalist Party in China, and then founding the modern-day People’s Republic of China.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Like his fellow revolutionaries, Jefferson recoiled from such aspects of empire, past and present.
    — Jackson Lears, Harpers Magazine, 27 Oct. 2026
Adjective
  • Imagine being able to test how a jet engine will perform under extreme temperatures, identify when a factory machine might fail, or see how a building will respond to changing weather conditions without physically experimenting on any of them.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 8 Nov. 2026
  • The most extreme is the outdoor pool with Lucerne’s lake water (untreated), a truly icy experience undertaken naked.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Nov. 2026
Adjective
  • The state data also listed three rabid bats in neighboring Yuba County and six in Sacramento County and five in Sutter County.
    — Daniel Hunt, Sacbee.com, 3 Nov. 2026
  • From the Winnipeg Jets’ full aurora borealis scene on the hem to the Boston Bruins having a brown jersey for the first time in more than 100 years, the league made sure to be grounding each look into something recognizable by each rabid fan base.
    — Scott Thompson OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Extremist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extremist. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster