lunatic fringe
4
8.8
- noun
- /ˈluːnətɪk frɪndʒ/
- Offensive
:
ala extremista
- Some believe that the views of the lunatic fringe can undermine important social discussions in the community.
- lunatic fringe group
Their opponents in science try to paint them as some sort of lunatic fringe.
- Their opponents in science try to paint them as some sort of lunatic fringe.
- And so many of these crazy far right lunatic fringe Christians, they don't want, they don't support equality.
- And you have all of these people that think that they are so morally superior that lean onto these stupid lunatic fringe lies.
Examples
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Unfortunately, there are those on the lunatic fringe who do not share this point of view.
Blog text (22) -
There's a lunatic fringe here, and if you don't stop it now, it will destroy us.
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Is talking about the poor a major problem for the lunatic fringe on the right?
Blog text (5) -
This party has taken on a lunatic fringe that now controls the Republican Party.
Blog text (14) -
It is not a third party; it is perceived as the lunatic fringe of the Republican Party.
Blog text (30) -
Never mind that European democracies are overrun with lunatic fringe parties that threaten to immobilize effective government.
Blog text (28) -
The warmists' strongest argument is the one from consensus, which marginalizes dissenters as a lunatic fringe in the public mind.
Blog text (10) -
The media often highlights the opinions of the lunatic fringe, portraying them as representative of the entire group.
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During the election season, candidates must address the concerns of the lunatic fringe to avoid alienating their base.
Synonyms
186
6.9
A person with very strong political or religious views who supports radical action
64
6.8
A small group whose ideas most people do not accept
57
5.1
A person with very strong enthusiasm for a cause who ignores reason
Antonyms
How Extreme
- Literature
186
6.9
57
5.1
- Offensive
4
8.8
79
6.3
85
4.6
75
3.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
The overall sense can largely be reconstructed from the constituents: 'lunatic' (extreme/crazy) modifying 'fringe' (the marginal edge or marginal group) yields the idea of extreme or fanatical members at the margins. However, the noun 'fringe' as a lexicalized term for a radical subgroup is a collocational usage that not all B1 learners may know, so the phrase is not fully transparent.
Etymology
Lunatic fringe pairs lunatic (a word that long ago suggested someone was affected by the moon) with fringe (the outer edge of a group). So it gives a picture of odd people standing at the edge, which is why it now means those with extreme views who are 'outside the main group'.