reformer

[ ri-fawr-mer ]

noun

1. a person devoted to bringing about significant change in attitudes and practices, such as in politics or society generally or within a particular organization.
2. Reformer, Church History. any of the leaders of the Reformation.

Other Words From

• an·ti·re·form·er noun
• coun·ter·re·form·er noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of reformer¹

First recorded in 1520–30; reform + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Gaetz, he claimed, was an “accomplished attorney,” despite his thin legal resume, and “a reformer in his mind and heart.”

From Salon

"He's a reformer in his mind and heart, and I think that he'll bring a lot to the table on that," said Johnson.

From BBC

The idea for the secretive squad at the center of Friday’s hearing stemmed from Villanueva’s 2018 campaign for sheriff, when he ran as a progressive reformer promising to address corruption in the department’s upper ranks.

From Los Angeles Times

“He kept good relations with the Fortune 500 presence here,” Patrick Coolican, the editor in chief of an independent news site called the Minnesota Reformer, told me.

From Slate

Riding on her reputation as an education reformer, she was elected to the Delhi assembly in 2020.

From BBC

Related Words

• agitator
• anarchist
• extremist
• fanatic
• firebrand
• insurgent
• leftist
• militant
• progressive
• rebel
• renegade
• revolutionary
• rioter
• subversive