as in conservative
tending to favor established ideas, conditions, or institutions
reactionary guardians of proper English usage invariably regard every new coinage that comes along as a nonword
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in rightist
a person whose political beliefs are centered on tradition and keeping things the way they are
reactionaries tried to stop the passage of the legislation extending civil rights
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in veteran
a person with old-fashioned ideas
a reactionary in the nation's ongoing culture war, she seems to believe that watching any TV at all will rot your brain
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reactionary
Kevin Lozano,
Harpers Magazine,
2 June 2026
Here, as ever, Kokopeli suggests that clinging to youthful talismans offers no protection against uncertainty, and reasserts the odd mix of disaffection and morbid glee produced by such reactionary impulses.
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Theo Belci,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
Adam Serwer,
The Atlantic,
19 May 2026
Like Curtis Yarvin and other neo-reactionaries, Land abhors democracy.
—
James Duesterberg,
New Yorker,
18 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reactionary
Adjective
The demonization of minorities was nothing new, of course, but New York in the Seventies birthed a reactionary movement that was supported by politicians, public intellectuals, elites, and working people alike.
—
Kevin Lozano,
Harpers Magazine,
2 June 2026
Here, as ever, Kokopeli suggests that clinging to youthful talismans offers no protection against uncertainty, and reasserts the odd mix of disaffection and morbid glee produced by such reactionary impulses.
—
Theo Belci,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
Noun
Radicals such as Sumner also warned, presciently, that the Fifteenth Amendment did not go far enough, and that its flaws would ultimately allow anti-Black reactionaries to undermine its purpose.
—
Adam Serwer,
The Atlantic,
19 May 2026
Like Curtis Yarvin and other neo-reactionaries, Land abhors democracy.
—
James Duesterberg,
New Yorker,
18 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reactionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reactionary
Adjective
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Texas is on the verge of mandating more than 5 million of its public school students to study Bible stories, as the state emerges as a leader in a national conservative effort to infuse Christian teachings into American classrooms.
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Lee raised his target from 7,700 as stronger corporate earnings offset a more conservative valuation outlook.
Noun
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The veteran guard joined the Nuggets in 2025 on a one-year veteran minimum contract and went on to post one of the best shooting seasons of his career.
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Trump’s order calls for veterans from around the country to come for rehabilitative services.
Adjective
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AerAware departs from traditional head-up displays and instead equips both pilots with a dual wearable system that delivers the same information to each cockpit seat.
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Inspired by the traditional Japanese spinning top beigoma (hence BEY-blade), the toy line first became a hit when it was debuted by toymaker Takara in the late 90s and early 2000s.
Adjective
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Rodriguez almost played as an auxiliary right-back instead of an orthodox right-winger, dropping deep and dictating play.
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In an age of intelligent machines, who gets to decide what is orthodox remains one of the most important questions a free society can ask.
Cite this Entry
“Reactionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reactionary. Accessed 30 Jun. 2026.
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