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antiliberal

antiliberal

7.9
Against political ideas that support personal freedom and equal rights
  • adjective
  • /ˌæntiˈlɪbərəl/
translation icon : antiliberal
  • The government's recent policies have been criticized for being increasingly antiliberal and restrictive.

Examples

  • They regard his core proposal—enforcing the work ethic—as a profoundly antiliberal idea, and they are right.

    Academic text (1992)
  • In the humanities, it offers a politicized curriculum, the core of which is antirationalist, antihumanist, and antiliberal.

    Academic text (1997)
  • There had never been and probably never would be an antiliberal revolution.

    Academic text (1992)
  • But blatantly antiliberal forces were not King's only nemeses.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Having been generally antidemocratic and antiliberal for centuries on end, Russian culture seems finally to have undergone an important transformation.

    Academic text (2001)
  • The antiliberal German political thinker Carl Schmitt famously claimed that there is no such thing as liberal politics, only a liberal critique of politics.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Many activists oppose the antiliberal stance of the ruling party, arguing it undermines democratic freedoms.

  • Scholars often debate the antiliberal ideologies that challenge the foundation of modern democracy.

Synonyms

far-right
vsantiliberal
  • Literature
20 6.8

Having very strong right-wing political views that oppose social change

is opposition without necessarily being extreme or reactionary
archconservative
vsantiliberal
1 8.4

Very traditional in politics and strongly against change

aims specifically at opposing liberal principles rather than change in general
postliberal
vsantiliberal
  • Literature
1 9.0

Having ideas that put community or tradition before individual freedom

focuses on direct opposition rather than developing a new approach
anti-liberal
vsantiliberal
6.8

Not supporting liberal political ideas or policies

is the same in meaning but written without a hyphen
nonliberal
vsantiliberal
7.5

Not supporting political ideas that protect freedom and rights

implies active opposition rather than mere absence of support
neo-reactionary
vsantiliberal
  • Literature
9.9

A political movement that wants older social and government rules instead of modern liberal ideas

is opposition without the explicit aim to restore older social orders

How Opposed

hostile
194 4.6
antiliberal
7.9
critical
210 3.8
neutral
218 3.6

Surface Forms

antiliberal positive

Morphology

antiliberal = liberal (transparent) = anti + liberal

The meaning is directly compositional: 'anti-' expresses opposition and 'liberal' supplies the target concept.

Etymology

The word antiliberal comes from the prefix anti- meaning 'against' and liberal, which relates to 'freedom' and support for 'change' or individual rights. So, antiliberal describes a policy or attitude that is against liberal ideas.