modernism

[ mod-er-niz-uhm ]

noun

1. modern character, tendencies, or values; adherence to or sympathy with what is modern.
2. a modern usage or characteristic.
3. (initial capital letter) Theology.
   1. the movement in Roman Catholic thought that sought to interpret the teachings of the Church in the light of philosophic and scientific conceptions prevalent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries: condemned by Pope Pius X in 1907.
   2. the liberal theological tendency in Protestantism in the 20th century.
4. (sometimes initial capital letter) a deliberate philosophical and practical estrangement or divergence from the past in the arts and literature occurring especially in the course of the 20th century and taking form in any of various innovative movements and styles.

modernism

/ ˈmɒdəˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. modern tendencies, characteristics, thoughts, etc, or the support of these
2. something typical of contemporary life or thought
3. a 20th-century divergence in the arts from previous traditions, esp in architecture See International Style
4. capital RC Church the movement at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries that sought to adapt doctrine to the supposed requirements of modern thought

Derived Forms

• ˌmodernˈistic, adjective
• ˈmodernist, nounadjective
• ˌmodernˈistically, adverb

Other Words From

• anti·modern·ism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of modernism¹

First recorded in 1730–40; modern + -ism

Example Sentences

Overshadowed by granite-and-glass high-rises with their empty floors and shuttered storefronts, it has survived redevelopment and earthquakes, modernism and the pandemic while holding fast to its 19th century principles.

From Los Angeles Times

Crittall Windows became synonymous both with modernism - and condensation, which can lead to serious problems such as mould, says Mr Adams, a teaching fellow at the Edinburgh College of Art.

From BBC

“But with the Aluminaire House, we are reminded that modernism is not just a style but an embodiment of ideas. Modernism is about making good design available to a wide audience.”

From Los Angeles Times

And yet the principles of “tropical modernism,” a postwar architectural movement born in West Africa and India, were pioneered by two Britons, Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew.

From New York Times

Conceptual art was both an extension and a critique of modernism.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• modernization