environmentalist

[ en-vahy-ruhn-men-tl-ist, -vahy-ern- ]

noun

1. an expert on environmental problems.
2. any person who advocates or works to protect the air, water, animals, plants, and other natural resources from pollution or its effects.
3. a person who believes that differences between individuals or groups, especially in moral and intellectual attributes, are predominantly determined by environmental factors, as surroundings, upbringing, or experience ( hereditarian ).

environmentalist

/ ɪnˌvaɪrənˈmɛntəlɪst /

noun

1. an adherent of environmentalism
2. a person who is concerned with the maintenance of ecological balance and the conservation of the environment
3. a person concerned with issues that affect the environment, such as pollution

Other Words From

• en·vi·ron·men·tal·ism noun
• an·ti·en·vi·ron·men·tal·ist noun adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of environmentalist¹

First recorded in 1915–20; environmental ( def ) + -ist

Example Sentences

The findings add to long-running concerns from environmentalists about the effects of retardant drops.

From Los Angeles Times

Robert F Kennedy Jr, Trump’s nominee to oversee health, is a longtime lawyer and environmentalist.

From BBC

Many of those claims are contested by environmentalists.

From BBC

Tanton drew on the views of some of America’s most influential environmentalists.

From Salon

When the coalition between the chancellor's centre-left Social Democrats, the environmentalist Greens and economically liberal FDP was formed in 2021, each party planned to spend big on its own individual core interest groups.

From BBC

Related Words

• ecologist