FANATICISM Synonyms: 109 Similar and Opposite Words

fanaticism

noun

Definition of fanaticism

as in zeal

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Dissimilar Words

as in dogmatism

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Dissimilar Words

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 fanaticism But the beauty of the beautiful game is that millions of dollars and people don’t guarantee success, that there’s a difference between a soccer-playing nation and a soccer nation, that passion and culture and fanaticism matter. — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2026 Even after the glow of the Cup has faded, opportunities to plug into Scotland’s football fanaticism will continue. — Laura Dannen Redman, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 May 2026 Global warming led to international tensions, and a mixture of religious fanaticism and failures in governance gave way to nuclear annihilation. — Ian Stokes, Space.com, 24 May 2026 Even OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, the current darlings of generative-AI fanaticism, will become subdued if their firms survive. — Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 22 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for fanaticism

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fanaticism

Noun

In the first match of Premier League 2026-27, a beautifully sad coincidence brings Newcastle United and Liverpool together on the grass Keegan once scrutinised with Shanklyesque zeal.

— Michael Walker, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2026
Fueled by affection for Gramps, by nostalgia for a childhood steeped in whiskymaking lore, and by a distinct lack of zeal for his law-firm day job, Kevin agrees to drive him the 2,000-odd miles from Arizona.

— Jessica Kiang, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of zeal

Noun

When authenticity becomes uncompromising, candor turns belligerent, consistency becomes rigid, or principled decision-making morphs into dogmatism, even the best intentions can backfire.

— Mary Crossan, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026
By staying so close to black metal’s core sound, Marchenko does more to undermine the dogmatism—both racial and aesthetic—of Vikernes and his ilk than a more obviously experimental project might.

— Sadie Sartini Garner, Pitchfork, 31 Mar. 2026

Definition of dogmatism

Noun

Head baker Lou Turner (formerly pastry chef at Obelix, a French bistro in the city’s River North) churns out superb pastries that invite obsession.

— The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 24 Aug. 2026
Neece was raised 15 minutes away from Disneyland and developed an obsession with it early on.

— Emma Madden, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of obsession

Noun

Thus polytheistic worship of deities and monist philosophy are not opposed but rather different ways of reaching the divine.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026
For three decades, in an increasingly noisy and stress-filled world, Miraval Arizona has embraced its philosophy of Life in Balance, pioneering the concept of transformative wellbeing through mindfulness.

— Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of philosophy

Noun

Despite Bret’s passionate insistence that his classmate is a serial killer, Croft tells him Robert is a good kid from a good family and sends him back to class.

— Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2026
The right-wing theological website Protestia has attacked Hamilton for not heeding Paul’s insistence that women stay silent in church.

— Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of insistence

Noun

What's your relationship to paparazzi and social media mania, given you’ve been in the spotlight for so long?

— Kalia Richardson, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Other moviegoers adored his campy but somehow restrained mania as the butler in Clue, or delighted in his nasty smarm as the concierge in Home Alone 2.

— Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of mania

Noun

Less apparent, though, is the dramatic shift in domestic security doctrine that undergirds these efforts.

— Andrei Soldatov, Foreign Affairs, 31 Aug. 2026
Greece sees the system as central to modernizing its forces amid tensions with NATO neighbor Turkey, embracing new doctrines to counter ballistic missiles, drones, cyber threats and other evolving forms of warfare.

— Sam Mednick, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of doctrine

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“Fanaticism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fanaticism. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of fanaticism

noun

Example Sentences

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