Antifederalist

American  

[an-tee-fed-er-uh-list, -fed-ruh-, an-tahy-] / ˌæn tiˈfɛd ər ə lɪst, -ˈfɛd rə-, ˌæn taɪ- /

noun

1. U.S. History. a member or supporter of the Antifederal party.

2. (lowercase) an opponent of federalism.

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Antifederalist British  

/ -ˈfɛdrə-, ˌæntɪˈfɛdərəlɪst /

noun

1. history a person who opposed the ratification of the Constitution in 1789 and thereafter allied with Thomas Jefferson's Antifederal Party, which opposed extension of the powers of the federal Government

2. (often not capital) any person who opposes federalism

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Other Word Forms

• Antifederalism noun

Etymology

Origin of Antifederalist

An Americanism dating back to 1780–90; anti- + federalist

Compare meaning

How does antifederalist compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• federalism vs. Antifederalist

Example Sentences

The term conveyed the political fear, so potent among the Antifederalist critics of the constitutional settlement of 1788, that the states would be absorbed by the new federal government.

From Literature

The old Antifederalist coalition that Madison had opposed so effectively at the Virginia ratifying convention in 1788 believed with some justification that their cause had never really been defeated, merely outmaneuvered.

From Literature

The Antifederalist opponents of the Constitution made precisely these points, but they were outmaneuvered, outargued, and ultimately outvoted by a dedicated band of national advocates in nine of the state ratifying conventions.

From Literature

He argues that the antifederalist legacy had some positive effects, among them the Bill of Rights.

From Washington Post

Perhaps most ominously, one prominent Pennsylvanian identifying himself only as “An Old Whig,” wrote about this in Antifederalist No. 70 and is worth quoting at length:

From Washington Post