IDEALIST Definition & Meaning

View synonyms for

idealist

[ ahy-dee-uh-list ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

a person who cherishes or pursues high or noble principles, purposes, goals, etc.
Synonyms: , , , ,
Antonyms: , ,
a visionary or impractical person.
Synonyms: , , ,
Antonyms: ,
a person who represents things as they might or should be rather than as they are:
My friend is an idealist, who somehow thinks that we always agree.
a writer or artist who treats subjects imaginatively.
a person who accepts the doctrines of philosophical idealism, as by representing things in an ideal form, or as they might or should be rather than as they are.

Discover More

Discover More

First recorded in 1695–1705; ideal + -ist

Discover More

Examples have not been reviewed.

“A moral man who led an immoral life, an idealist who had betrayed his ideals. No one despised Richard as much as Richard himself.”

From

And Chinese media describe him as a "technical idealist" - he insists on keeping DeepSeek as an open-source platform.

From

We’re conscious that the point is to lament an idealist whose life was cut short.

From

On the other, "she had the restlessness of an idealist with a certain anger at the world as it was", Eve, now 67, told the BBC.

From

I was always very much an idealist and was like, "Let's just try."

From

Browse