as in nativism
fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners
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Recent Examples of xenophobia
The rise of authoritarianism, xenophobia and nationalism is also fueling young people’s desire to act, as opportunities that were once available to their parents’ generations have nearly disappeared.
—
Kara Fox, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025
Dismissing these concerns as mere xenophobia is both condescending and factually wrong.
—Letters To The Editor, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025
Ishiba may also place more importance on the formal message in light of rising right-wing populism and xenophobia in Japan.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 10 Sep. 2025
Some felt his comments to police were proof of his alleged xenophobia, emails showed.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for xenophobia
Kara Fox, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025
Dismissing these concerns as mere xenophobia is both condescending and factually wrong.
—Letters To The Editor, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025
Ishiba may also place more importance on the formal message in light of rising right-wing populism and xenophobia in Japan.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 10 Sep. 2025
Some felt his comments to police were proof of his alleged xenophobia, emails showed.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for xenophobia
Recent Examples of Synonyms for xenophobia
Noun
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But Newsom’s shadow diplomacy, widely seen as a pretentious distraction during the Biden years, has a different look at a moment of nativism and trade conflict in Washington.—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
1 Feb. 2026
-
Finally, nativism and protectionism offer voters someone or something to blame.—
BEATRICE MAGISTRO,
Foreign Affairs,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Her stories are well-told, relevant and often searing, detailing an elementary-school teacher’s slight, a hometown swimming-pool reckoning and chauvinism from an Ivy League club.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
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Their creative harmony and Charli’s mental wellbeing are threatened when her label brings in toxic concert film director Johannes (Alexander Skarsgård), a role that seems custom fit for the Swedish actor, who takes up all the oxygen in the room with an effortless chauvinism.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The positive feelings people have toward their community translate directly into civic engagement, without the risk of increasing negative feelings such as jingoism or xenophobia.—
Sean Richey,
The Conversation,
15 Jan. 2026
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Al-Akkad reserves his harshest criticism not for the obvious warmongers of American empire, explicit in their jingoism and nationalist fervor, but for the decorous liberal centrists, complacent in their institutional comfort, their birthright virtue too easily claimed.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Xenophobia.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/xenophobia. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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