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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fogey
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in conservativeness
attitudes or opinions tending to favor established ideas, conditions, or institutions
the region's entrenched reactionaryism made it one of the major battlegrounds for the civil rights movement in the 1960s
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reactionary
Maximo Bratter, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 June 2025
Investors can view these holdings not as reactionary plays, but as strategic insurance against global volatility.
—Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 16 June 2025
Kail’s Louise presents a more honest style, a more reactionary and straightforward approach to the zaniness that envelops.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
Hugo returned to a hero’s welcome, and to the establishment of the Third Republic, which lionized him until it, too, was at last destroyed by the same forces of reactionary authoritarianism, in new uniforms, in 1940.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for reactionary
Adjective
Consequently, with a neutered DNC and Florida Democratic Party, activist groups have taken upon the reactionary, confrontational attitude that launched solid-left candidates like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Florida’s own Maxwell Alejandro Frost to Congress.
—Maximo Bratter, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 June 2025
Investors can view these holdings not as reactionary plays, but as strategic insurance against global volatility.
—Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 16 June 2025
Kail’s Louise presents a more honest style, a more reactionary and straightforward approach to the zaniness that envelops.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
Hugo returned to a hero’s welcome, and to the establishment of the Third Republic, which lionized him until it, too, was at last destroyed by the same forces of reactionary authoritarianism, in new uniforms, in 1940.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for reactionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reactionary
Adjective
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Florida is a state of paradoxes, from its history of colonization and relationship to enslavement, to its immigrant communities and conservative politics, to its gorgeous waters and swampy inlands.—
Leila Mottley
June 27,
Literary Hub,
27 June 2025
-
The high court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, has in recent years been sympathetic to plaintiffs raising claims of religious discrimination.—
June 27,
CBS News,
27 June 2025
Adjective
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The traditional approach of training a robot on action with reinforcement was very slow, but generative AI allows for much greater generalization.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
24 June 2025
-
AccuWeather meteorologist Tom Kines explained that the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature factors in more variables than the traditional heat index, which considers only air temperature and relative humidity.—
Joe Edwards,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 June 2025
Adjective
-
The reward was the most successful period in their history and an example that, in time, might embolden other clubs to challenge the orthodox thinking.—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor,
New York Times,
13 May 2025
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Martinez is 29 years old, stands at 5-foot-11 with a 72-inch reach, and fights in an orthodox right-handed stance.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
22 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reactionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reactionary. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
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