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ideology

ideology

277 6.3
Ideas and beliefs that guide a group's political and social actions
  • noun
  • /ˌaɪdiˈɑlədʒi/
translation icon : ideología
  • The harder you try to stamp out an ideology the stronger it becomes.
  • political ideology
  • Western ideology
  • dominant ideology

That's the kind of ideology that I was growing up with.

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Examples

  • Understanding the ideology behind a political party can help voters make informed choices.

  • Now let's talk for a minute about this man's ideology and his intentions.

  • Find people who believe in an ideology, bring them in.

  • I believe their ideology LED them to want to believe.

  • The human race now is only going to be concerned not with an ideology but what allows them to survive.

  • In fact, the universities were afraid of the spread of Western ideology and values by Americans.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Nor does it follow from taking class seriously that ideology is merely the expression of class interests.

    Academic text (1990)
  • This is not a time for ideology or orthodoxy.

  • My study, in contrast, offers an example of landscape as ideology in a rural, agricultural setting.

    Academic text (1999)
  • In the global struggle between two ideologies, only the capitalist nations could be described as free.

    Academic text (1999)

Synonyms

philosophy
vsideology
514 4.4

A set of ideas that guide how a person or group acts

is more targeted to ideas that structure broad social, economic, or political arrangements
thought
vsideology
  • Formal
271 5.2

A set of ideas and opinions shared by people at the same time

is more deliberate as an organising set of ideas that guides systems
doctrine
vsideology
199 6.0

A set of beliefs taught and held by a group, for example a religion or political party

places those group teachings within a wider system shaping society and policy
orientation
vsideology
96 4.2

A person's set of beliefs or preferences that guide their actions

is narrower, focusing on structured ideas that form societal or political systems
belief system
vsideology
46 3.8

A set of ideas and values that shape how people think and act

is focused on collective public systems rather than private or religious principles
ism
vsideology
22 8.6

A set of ideas that guides a group's beliefs and actions

is a broader set of ideas that underpins whole social or political systems
political theory
vsideology
  • Specialized
5 5.1

A set of ideas about how a country or society should be governed

covers those political ideas but also wider social and economic belief systems
1 7.7

A set of ideas and beliefs that a group of thinkers accept

applies those organized doctrines specifically to political and social system foundations
1 5.3

A person or group's beliefs about government and public issues and the side they support

is wider, encompassing systemic beliefs beyond individual political positions

Antonyms

22 4.4

Not supporting either side in a conflict or argument

14 5.6

A practical way of solving problems that focuses on what works

Compounds

A set of ideas or beliefs that many people strongly disagree about

Extreme beliefs in Japan that make people hate others and support military power

9.9

A political belief that mixes strict religious rules with cruel, controlling government power

takfiri ideology
  • Offensive
9.9

A belief in Islam that says it is right to attack people it calls non-believers

Political ideas of Leon Trotsky calling for ongoing revolution and international socialism

How Systematic

dogma
48 7.7
doctrine
199 6.0
ideology
277 6.3
worldview
141 4.4
belief
1.1
opinion
1.0

Surface Forms

ideology singular
ideologies plural

Morphology

ideology = idea (opaque) = idea + logy

The word is historically built from 'idea' + '-logy', but its modern meaning has shifted away from the expected 'study of ideas' reading.

Etymology

The word ideology comes from the parts idea ('idea') and -logy ('study'), the same -logy you see in biology. So ideology means a system or set of ideas that people hold and follow.