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radical

radical

79 6.3
A person who wants major political or social change
  • noun
  • /ˈrædɪkəl/
translation icon : radical
  • The political radicals sought drastic changes to the government's policies.
  • radicals and moderates
  • political radicals
  • radicals and conservatives

The FBI, if, if they were deemed radical, you're deemed A radical Christian.

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Examples

  • Aron was a Zionist, a bit of a radical in those days.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • Finally, there are market radicals who are calling for straightforward privatization of property and free markets.

    Academic text (1991)
  • You choose to be friends with this radical.

  • Of course, being a businessman and not a crazy radical, he expects to be paid for his services.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • First of all, we do not like having radicals, OK?

  • Started out as a student radical at Berkeley in the '60s.

  • This gang of radicals, he concluded, would only lead Greece to ruin.

  • Moreover, one can also differentiate in the Soviet case between the radicals and the conservatives.

    Academic text (1992)
  • For Lenin, as well as for many other radicals in Europe, the revolution was just an abstraction.

    Academic text (2008)
  • The relatively moderate group of Republicans that remained fractured in 1870, leaving radicals on the outside of the governing coalition.

    Academic text (2017)

Synonyms

extremist
vsradical
  • Literature
186 6.9

A person with very strong political or religious views who supports radical action

focuses on supporting thorough reform rather than endorsing extreme measures
revolutionary
vsradical
48 5.8

A person who supports or takes part in political change to remove a government

supports thorough political or social reform without joining revolts
red
vsradical
  • Archaic
13 9.1

A person who supports extreme left politics

covers supporters of thorough reform beyond a single ideology
Bolshevik
vsradical
3 9.0

A person who was part of the Russian revolutionary group that took power in 1917

is a general supporter of thorough reform beyond that historical group
revolutionist
vsradical
1 7.0

A person who takes strong action to change a government or society

supports deep reform but does not necessarily take direct action
bolshie
vsradical
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person with strong rebellious opinions who challenges authority

describes someone who supports planned social or political reform rather than mere rebellion
transformationist
vsradical
8.6

A person who wants big changes in society or public institutions

is the broader label for someone backing deep political or social reform
red-ragger
vsradical
  • Slang
9.9

A person who supports extreme left-wing political change

is broader, applying to people who support thorough reform across beliefs

Antonyms

85 4.6

A person with political views that are not extreme

A person who holds strongly to old customs and resists change

Compounds

free radical
  • Specialized
8 5.1

A small unstable atom or molecule that can damage body cells by reacting with them

radical mastectomy
  • Specialized
3 6.1

Surgery that removes a breast, chest muscles, and lymph nodes under the armpit to treat breast cancer

radical hysterectomy
  • Specialized
1 7.2

Surgery that removes the womb, ovaries, fallopian tubes, cervix, and nearby lymph nodes to treat cancer

1 6.8

A surgery that removes a breast with nearby chest muscle and some armpit lymph nodes

radical chic
  • Offensive
1 9.7

A style where rich people show left-wing views to seem socially aware

benzoyl radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A reactive group that forms when benzoic acid loses its OH group

benzyl radical
  • Specialized
8.7

A small chemical group formed when toluene loses one hydrogen atom from its methyl part

cacodyl radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A small chemical group containing arsenic and two methyl parts

cyanide radical
  • Specialized
8.4

A small chemical group made of one carbon and one nitrogen atom written as -CN

cyano radical
  • Specialized
9.3

A small chemical group made of one carbon and one nitrogen atom that attaches to other molecules, written as −CN

acetyl radical
  • Specialized
7.9

A small group of atoms from acetic acid that can attach to other molecules

alcohol radical
  • Specialized
7.2

A group of atoms written as –OH that makes a molecule an alcohol

aldehyde radical
  • Specialized
7.9

A carbon atom double-bonded to oxygen and single-bonded to hydrogen

alkyl radical
  • Specialized
7.3

A group of carbon and hydrogen atoms that attaches to a molecule with one free bond

allyl radical
  • Specialized
9.6

A small, reactive part of a molecule with three carbon atoms and one unpaired electron

azo radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A chemical group with two nitrogen atoms that links two carbon chains and gives bright colours to dyes

azido radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A small chemical group made of three nitrogen atoms that carries a negative charge

ethanoyl radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A part of a molecule used in chemistry, formed from the acid in vinegar, written CH3CO

ethyl radical
  • Specialized
7.5

A small reactive group of two carbon and five hydrogen atoms that forms when ethane loses one hydrogen atom

methylene radical
  • Specialized
9.0

A very reactive group of one carbon and two hydrogen atoms that exists briefly in chemical reactions

methyl radical
  • Specialized
7.0

A very active group of one carbon and three hydrogen atoms with formula CH3, formed when methane loses one hydrogen

hydroxyl radical
  • Specialized
8.0

A small chemical part made of one oxygen and one hydrogen atom that reacts quickly

hydrazo radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A small chemical group made of two nitrogen atoms and hydrogen that can attach to a molecule at two places

propyl radical
  • Specialized
8.2

A small reactive part of a molecule made from propane when it loses one hydrogen

radical sign
  • Specialized
5.3

A symbol √ that shows the square root of a number

9.6

A small secret group of people who plan or use political violence

uranyl radical
  • Specialized
9.9

A charged particle made of uranium and oxygen that forms salts with acids

vinyl radical
  • Specialized
8.8

A small chemical group with formula CH2=CH− that reacts easily in making plastics

How Radical

extremist
  • Literature
186 6.9
radical
79 6.3
activist
6 3.7
reformer
100 3.5
moderate
85 4.6
conservative
306 4.4

Surface Forms

radical singular
radicals plural

Etymology

Radical comes from the Latin radix, meaning 'root'. A political or social radical is someone who wants change at the 'root' of a system, so they push for deep or complete reform.