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individualists

noun

plural of individualist
as in bohemians
a person who does not conform to generally accepted standards or customs an individualist who steadfastly refuses to do what everyone else is doing

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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 individualists The forty-niners are elemental to our identity as a nation of brave, rugged individualists. — Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 4 May 2026 Based on actual events, Eden features a starry cast playing a disparate group of rugged individualists who all find themselves in the Galapagos in the early 20th century, each abandoning society in the hopes of creating a utopia. — Will Leitch, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for individualists
  1. mavericks
  2. loners
Noun
  • For Jia, who has watched generations of Chinese talents develop in a variety of ways, his hope is for these Chinese mavericks playing in America to stay.
    — Fred He, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Carl Anka Trent Alexander-Arnold’s England career is a fascinating case study in why team sports can prefer the orthodox to the mavericks.
    — The Athletic UK Staff, New York Times, 13 May 2026
Definition of mavericks
Noun
  • The New Zealander drew international acclaim for roles as gruff loners and unhinged villains.
    — Harrison Smith, Washington Post, 13 July 2026
  • The findings, detailed today in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, suggest not only that all black holes emit such a wind but also that these beasts are not total loners that are isolated from their environments.
    — Jeanna Bryner, Scientific American, 4 June 2026
Definition of loners

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individualistic
individualists
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Cite this Entry

“Individualists.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/individualists. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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