nativist 1 of 2

Definition of nativistnext

nativist

2 of 2

noun

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 nativist
Adjective
Driven by the same nativist and xenophobic ideas, the United States adopted the Immigration Acts of 1921 and 1924, which ended mass immigration by introducing national-origin quotas designed to favor Northern and Western Europeans and exclude nonwhite immigrants almost entirely. M. Gessen, Mercury News, 11 June 2026 Was this restrictive definition not akin to the nativist rhetoric coming from the right? Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 10 June 2026 But Matter scoffed at the idea that the initiative has nativist undertones. Jessi Jezewska Stevens, New Yorker, 8 June 2026 Today, not only are these conditions under assault by a kleptocratic, nativist US federal government, but the clock seems also to be running out on their own internal contradictions. Katy Siegel, Artforum, 2 June 2026 At the end of the day, all Calvert and Kim are doing is pandering to the nativist base of their party in hopes of getting another two years over in the Swamp. Sal Rodriguez, Oc Register, 15 Apr. 2026 Eventually, that nativist turn would take America into a series of constitutional crises and to the edge of some American version of fascism. Literary Hub, 8 Apr. 2026 At the latter stages of the transition, aging richer countries now require workers from overseas – but are coming up against a nativist backlash. John Rennie Short, The Conversation, 31 Mar. 2026 In 1942, as the government was forcibly relocating and incarcerating Japanese Americans on the West Coast, a nativist group hoped to revoke the citizenship of Japanese Americans born in the United States. Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026
Noun
This undiplomatic tirade went over well in the White House, but marked him as a belligerent nativist abroad and something of an isolationist at home. Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 17 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nativist
Adjective
  • Driven by the same nativist and xenophobic ideas, the United States adopted the Immigration Acts of 1921 and 1924, which ended mass immigration by introducing national-origin quotas designed to favor Northern and Western Europeans and exclude nonwhite immigrants almost entirely.
    M. Gessen, Mercury News, 11 June 2026
  • South African officials have condemned the protests as xenophobic acts.
    ABC News, ABC News, 11 June 2026
Noun
  • Barton’s pseudo-scholarship furnished Christian nationalists with valuable ammunition, but the movement needed foot soldiers.
    Michael Luo, New Yorker, 14 June 2026
  • Patrick said Democrats accuse Republicans of being Christian nationalists.
    Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 13 June 2026
Adjective
  • Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Belfast on Saturday to denounce anti-immigrant rioters who set fire to homes and cars earlier in the week after a brutal stabbing blamed on an asylum seeker.
    ABC News, ABC News, 13 June 2026
  • June 13, 2026 1 of 10 Elon Musk came under fire for stoking anti-immigrant riots this week in which capital city?
    Ashley Mowreader, NBC news, 13 June 2026
Noun
  • There really are chauvinists out there.
    Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 4 June 2026
  • Sacco knows better than most that political chauvinists of all kinds can point to past moments of injury and humiliation to justify any current cruelty or authoritarian project—an especially powerful appeal when those historical injustices are real.
    Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 18 Dec. 2025
Adjective
  • Popular music wasn't in a particularly patriotic mood either.
    ABC News, ABC News, 13 June 2026
  • There are parades, ceremonies, patriotic speeches, and countless displays of the Stars and Stripes.
    Joseph Andrew, Forbes.com, 13 June 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Nativist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nativist. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.

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