legalism

American  

[lee-guh-liz-uhm] / ˈli gəˌlɪz əm /

noun

1. strict adherence, or the principle of strict adherence, to law or prescription, especially to the letter rather than the spirit.

2. Theology.

   1. the doctrine that salvation is gained through good works.

   2. the judging of conduct in terms of adherence to precise laws.

3. (initial capital letter) (in Chinese philosophy) the principles and practices of a school of political theorists advocating strict legal control over all activities, a system of rewards and punishments uniform for all classes, and an absolute monarchy.

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legalism British  

/ ˈliːɡəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. strict adherence to the law, esp the stressing of the letter of the law rather than its spirit

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Other Word Forms

• legalist noun
• legalistic adjective
• legalistically adverb

Etymology

Origin of legalism

First recorded in 1830–40; legal + -ism

Example Sentences

Witness the silly legalism of his concern for whether RAF bases would be used to serve offensive rather than defensive purposes.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

Yet they were also very different: the Malikite legalism of the Almoravids was in contrast to the cosmopolitanism of Ibn Tumart’s ideology.

From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023

And he seems less driven by moralism than bound by legalism.

From Washington Post • May 24, 2019

And now he’s trapped by the same legalism that freed him.

From New York Times • Apr. 5, 2019

Only, men who had not passed like Paul from the extreme of trust in legalism to a corresponding extremity of despair might be pardoned for some insensibility to this inconsistency.

From The Making of the New Testament by Bacon, Benjamin Wisner