as in liberal
a person with very modern ideas
a time when Paris was the center of the universe for modernists in the art world
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Recent Examples of modernist
Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 25 Feb. 2026
Warner Lewis, Brown Harris Stevens, (212) 381-6590 Chicago The 1913 Lincoln Street Bath House, once a municipal washing place when indoor plumbing was rare, is now a six-bedroom modernist home with a children’s room featuring an elevated platform storage bed and a play loft.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 24 Feb. 2026
There’s a tremendous sense of movement to her prose, combined with a ground-level lens that brings to mind early 20th century modernists.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Utzon won the bid to design the Opera House in 1957, and his groundbreaking modernist creation is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Feb. 2026
The late Cuban modernist painter, whose boundary-blurring art explored his complex Afro-Asian Latino heritage, is currently having his largest-ever American retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art.
—Stephanie Sporn, Vogue, 15 Feb. 2026
Harkening back to the out-of-this-world aesthetics that won them broad acclaim for Poor Things, the commercial opens on a crumbling modernist edifice on a rocky outcrop in a stormy ocean.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Feb. 2026
Maybourne tapped French architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte to transform a vacant property into a modernist hangout filled with head-turning artwork.
—Mary Winston Nicklin, AFAR Media, 20 Jan. 2026
In April, a modernist Westchester home built for a Rockefeller hit the market for $12 million.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 20 Jan. 2026
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2026
Staged and installed in the museum’s McCormick House gallery, a 1950s bungalow designed by the modernist architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, the photographs depict intimate moments in the lives of two women.
—Lori Waxman, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
It has been praised by preservationists as an irreplaceable example of modernist architecture.
—Giles Hudson, CBS News, 20 Feb. 2026
While the enclave is dominated by multiple 'palace' hotels, a distinction the French government awards only to the most exceptional stays, the new Rosewood Courchevel Le Jardin Alpin stood out for its design-forward take on the valley’s modernist chalets.
—Lane Nieset, Travel + Leisure, 19 Feb. 2026
Along with its affordable and modernist home furnishings, IKEA is known for its sprawling showrooms and in-store restaurant that serves everything from soft serve to Swedish meatballs.
—Maia Pandey, jsonline.com, 18 Feb. 2026
Brazilian architect Marcio Kogan of Studio MK27 is renowned for his modernist residences, which typically feature clean lines, natural materials, and seamless connections between the indoors and outdoors.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 18 Feb. 2026
Across its glossy pages are earthy modernist homes across different Pacific regions, from Big Sur to New Zealand.
—Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 18 Feb. 2026
Perhaps the most famous home in Los Angeles, The Stahl House, designed by modernist master Pierre Koenig, has inspired countless architecture nerds.
—Hadley Meares, HollywoodReporter, 14 Feb. 2026
Noun
But there’s also rare Togo Fireside chairs in a deep tobacco color, the classic Eames lounge chair, and a moody brown Ellison Studios Muse sofa inspired by the Italian modernists of the 1970s.
—Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 25 Feb. 2026
Warner Lewis, Brown Harris Stevens, (212) 381-6590 Chicago The 1913 Lincoln Street Bath House, once a municipal washing place when indoor plumbing was rare, is now a six-bedroom modernist home with a children’s room featuring an elevated platform storage bed and a play loft.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 24 Feb. 2026
There’s a tremendous sense of movement to her prose, combined with a ground-level lens that brings to mind early 20th century modernists.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Utzon won the bid to design the Opera House in 1957, and his groundbreaking modernist creation is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Feb. 2026
The late Cuban modernist painter, whose boundary-blurring art explored his complex Afro-Asian Latino heritage, is currently having his largest-ever American retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art.
—Stephanie Sporn, Vogue, 15 Feb. 2026
Harkening back to the out-of-this-world aesthetics that won them broad acclaim for Poor Things, the commercial opens on a crumbling modernist edifice on a rocky outcrop in a stormy ocean.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Feb. 2026
Maybourne tapped French architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte to transform a vacant property into a modernist hangout filled with head-turning artwork.
—Mary Winston Nicklin, AFAR Media, 20 Jan. 2026
In April, a modernist Westchester home built for a Rockefeller hit the market for $12 million.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 20 Jan. 2026
Adjective
That’s why the casting of nonprofessionals is at the core of the modernist project of cinematic demystification, the stripping of theatrical artifice to arrive at an essence—whether social, spiritual, formal, or emotional.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2026
Staged and installed in the museum’s McCormick House gallery, a 1950s bungalow designed by the modernist architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, the photographs depict intimate moments in the lives of two women.
—Lori Waxman, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
It has been praised by preservationists as an irreplaceable example of modernist architecture.
—Giles Hudson, CBS News, 20 Feb. 2026
While the enclave is dominated by multiple 'palace' hotels, a distinction the French government awards only to the most exceptional stays, the new Rosewood Courchevel Le Jardin Alpin stood out for its design-forward take on the valley’s modernist chalets.
—Lane Nieset, Travel + Leisure, 19 Feb. 2026
Along with its affordable and modernist home furnishings, IKEA is known for its sprawling showrooms and in-store restaurant that serves everything from soft serve to Swedish meatballs.
—Maia Pandey, jsonline.com, 18 Feb. 2026
Brazilian architect Marcio Kogan of Studio MK27 is renowned for his modernist residences, which typically feature clean lines, natural materials, and seamless connections between the indoors and outdoors.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 18 Feb. 2026
Across its glossy pages are earthy modernist homes across different Pacific regions, from Big Sur to New Zealand.
—Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 18 Feb. 2026
Perhaps the most famous home in Los Angeles, The Stahl House, designed by modernist master Pierre Koenig, has inspired countless architecture nerds.
—Hadley Meares, HollywoodReporter, 14 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for modernist
Noun
-
Merz is a conservative Atlanticist and unapologetic economic liberal.—
Julia Khrebtan-Hörhager,
The Conversation,
11 Feb. 2026
-
This year, the party has another chance to try something other than nominating a conventional liberal who loses and then gets to run an NGO.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The firm relies heavily on additive manufacturing and modern production processes to reduce costs and accelerate output.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Nothing was said or done in the roughly 35 minutes the candidates devoted to themselves that seemed likely to change the dynamic or trajectory of a race that remains stubbornly ill-defined and, to an unprecedented degree in modern times, wide open.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Mercury News,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Supporters call his work revolutionary.—
Sharyn Alfonsi,
CBS News,
23 Feb. 2026
-
The eighteenth-century revolutionary’s horse remained, riderless, backgrounded by bright-green leaves and a tangy blue sky.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The character of Julia is a reminder that no contemporary American filmmaker besides Whit Stillman can credibly write for WASPs.—
Peter Tonguette,
The Washington Examiner,
27 Feb. 2026
-
In Ray’s bare-bones house, spotless and white and lacking any of the familiar comforts that make Colin’s life with his parents so cozy, there is a guy who reads contemporary auto-fiction who needs little reading glasses to do so.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
By offering to set aside nearly a third of the units as affordably priced, Vessel is able to use Connecticut’s 8-30g law as powerful leverage to get those plans approved — especially in affluent suburbs unaccustomed to large-scale apartment complexes with modernistic architecture.—
Don Stacom,
Hartford Courant,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Others suggested the 50-foot steel sculpture was a bird, a horse, a Viking ship, a baboon or a modernistic representation of Picasso’s dog.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Along with the astonishing views of the Uinta Mountains, the Aspen Camp neighborhood inside the gates of the exclusive Promontory community captivates with a collection of ultramodern homes designed to immerse residents in Park City’s rugged beauty.—
Demetrius Simms,
Robb Report,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Inspired by a pile of cardboard and constructed using the same material, Frank Gehry’s luxe Wiggle chair functions as the perfect compact statement piece that will slot right in next to a library bookshelf or stand on its on in an ultramodern space.—
Kate McGregor,
Architectural Digest,
16 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Since 2010, scientists have known that Neanderthals and our ancestors had offspring together, and those hybrid babies passed down their genes to many present-day people.—
Carolyn Y. Johnson,
Washington Post,
26 Feb. 2026
-
For more than a year, Ricker has worked with government engineers, archivists and National Parks personnel to develop a device that will insulate and preserve dozens of present-day documents from natural elements, like water, oxygen and temperature fluctuations, for the country’s 500th anniversary.—
Karissa Waddick,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Under the current version of the empty homes tax measure, owners of vacant second homes would have to pay an annual levy of $8,000 the first year, effective in 2027, and $10,000 every following year.—
Lori Weisberg,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Feb. 2026
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Lastly, Warriors assistant coach Kris Weems enjoyed a long conversation with onetime Stanford teammate and current Grizzlies commentator Brevin Knight.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
26 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Modernist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/modernist. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
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