as in materialists
a person who is chiefly interested in material comfort and is hostile or indifferent to art and culture
the town's philistines who think that spending on the arts is a waste of taxpayers' money
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for philistines
Noun
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In front of him, idolatrous Republican lawmakers popped up and down to applaud like clowns in wind-up music boxes of old.—
Jackie Calmes,
Mercury News,
27 Feb. 2026 -
An episodic framework, physical comedy, a small ensemble of actors who are all at home in their clowns and who will all, at some point, drop the mask to speak to us as themselves — for Ogawa, these are ways to bring effervescence and intimacy to the contemplation of insoluble, heavy things.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Property Play covers new and evolving opportunities for the real estate investor, from individuals to venture capitalists, private equity funds, family offices, institutional investors and large public companies.—
Diana Olick,
CNBC,
26 Feb. 2026
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The winners are the venture capitalists.—
U T Readers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Swapping the weight of a gun for the promise of a camera, McKenzie captures city pigeons and rats as well as elusive panthers.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Mar. 2026
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The surveyors initially thought the sound was rats.—
Ryan Brennan,
Miami Herald,
4 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Philistines.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/philistines. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
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