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anti-intellectual

[ an-tee-in-tl-ek-choo-uhl, an-tahy‑ ]

noun

  1. a person opposed to or hostile toward intellectuals and the modern academic, artistic, social, religious, and other theories associated with them.
  2. a person who believes that intellect and reason are less important than actions and emotions in solving practical problems and understanding reality.


adjective

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of anti-intellectuals or their beliefs.

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Other Words From

  • an·ti-in·tel·lec·tu·al·ism noun
  • an·ti-in·tel·lec·tu·al·is·tic adjective
  • an·ti-in·tel·lec·tu·al·i·ty noun

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Word History and Origins

Origin of anti-intellectual1

First recorded in 1935–40

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Example Sentences

What possible change can any one citizen instigate against that barrage of anti-intellectual, gun-toting paranoia?

But anarchism is a logical outgrowth of the anti-intellectual side of collectivism.

George W. Bush—who loved to joke about being a C student—had been more blatantly anti-intellectual than Ronald Reagan.

Called the Third Wave, it was rooted in an explicitly anti-intellectual creation myth.

We like our presidents to be readers—something which even anti-intellectual George W. Bush seemed to realize.

This movement, of which Courbet will always remain the most famous representative, has been anti-intellectual.

Is Fascism therefore "anti-intellectual," as has been so often charged?

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anti-inflationaryanti-intellectualism