philistinism

noun

as in idiocy

Related Words

Relevance

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 philistinism Fascism lives in the upside-down; professional gaslighting features heavily amongst its weaponry, along with the blinking philistinism of the soulless. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 14 June 2026 Despite such official philistinism, Proust had already left an enduring mark on Irish letters and would remain a source of literary inspiration for the nation’s writers into the twenty-first century. — Literary Hub, 2 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for philistinism
  1. idiocy
  2. imbecility
  3. dumbness
  4. stupidity
  5. mindlessness
Noun
  • Beavis and Butt-Head function as a note-perfect satire of teenage confidence and idiocy, but the sharpness of the writing has always belied the bottom-of-the-barrel intellect of its title characters.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Sep. 2026
  • It’s been a classic staple over decades of British comedy, which from Basil Fawlty to David Brent has rejoiced in puncturing pomposity to reveal idiocy and incompetence.
    — Alex Ritman, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of idiocy
Noun
  • When Constanze reaches her breaking point, Mozart’s imbecility is exposed as fragility.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026
Definition of imbecility
Noun
  • The first 10 minutes are an incredible swirl of paranoia, alcoholism, and sluggish dumbness when Gould just needs to feed his cat.
    — Eric Farwell, Entertainment Weekly, 12 June 2026
  • Unlike its sibling concepts of dumbness and idiocy, stupidity isn’t really a personality trait.
    — Jonny Thomson, Big Think, 11 Feb. 2026
Definition of dumbness
Noun
  • Nerdiest song for drummers This will probably come down to stupidity.
    — Devon Ivie, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2026
  • This stupidity is tantamount to a cop issuing a summons to someone picking their nose in public to prove that crime is out of control.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of stupidity
Noun
  • There’s the White House and its malicious megaphone of mindlessness; the generative AI advocates and their pushy, pathetic ploys; the Major League Baseball owners and their dedication to self-destruction.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026
  • The show’s real villain is mindlessness, in other words.
    — Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Definition of mindlessness

Browse Nearby Words

philistines
philistinism
philosopher
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Philistinism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/philistinism. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tittle

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All