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antinuclear

antinuclear

1 6.3
Against nuclear weapons or nuclear power
  • adjective
  • /ˌæntiˈnjuːklɪr/
translation icon : antinuclear
  • She joined the antinuclear movement because she strongly opposed the use of nuclear energy.
  • antinuclear movement
  • antinuclear protest
  • antinuclear policies

Examples

  • Labour's antinuclear positions in the 1980s represent significant shifts in attitudes as well as policies.

    Academic text (1990)
  • While this public opinion showed itself capable in the 1980s and 1990s of blocking further nuclear development, antinuclear feeling has not been sufficiently strong to bring about the accelerated phase-out of nuclear power.

    Academic text (1999)
  • A second new adverse element is the rise of antinuclear defensive technology.

    Academic text (2000)
  • Antinuclear defenses are not, like nuclear bombs, old technology; they are brand new.

    Academic text (2000)
  • We address people across the whole political spectrum, whether an antinuclear activist, a utility manager in charge of a reactor, or a waste contractor.

    Academic text (1994)
  • Throughout the fall of 1981, the administration faced a massive antinuclear crusade in both Western Europe and the United States that it could not ignore.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The possibility that even some prominent French socialists might be drawn into the currently antinuclear mainstream of the Socialist International cannot be ruled out.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Although at one time fervently antinuclear, Dagens Nyheter has completely reversed its position in recent years.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Antinuclear defenses have long been the wild card of nuclear policy, generating almost nonstop intellectual confusion and popular misunderstanding.

    Academic text (2000)
  • Reagan, to the utter disbelief of many observers, harbored deeply antinuclear sentiments.

    Academic text (1990)

Surface Forms

antinuclear positive

Morphology

antinuclear = nuclear (transparent) = anti + nucle + ar

This is a regular anti- + nuclear formation, so the opposition meaning is directly recoverable from the parts.

Etymology

Antinuclear comes from anti- 'against' and nucleus 'core' or 'little nut', so it literally means 'against the atom core'. That's why antinuclear describes people or groups who are opposed to nuclear weapons or nuclear power.