universalism

American  

[yoo-nuh-vur-suh-liz-uhm] / ˌyu nəˈvɜr səˌlɪz əm /

noun

1. universal character; universality.

2. a universal range of knowledge, interests, or activities.

3. (initial capital letter) the doctrine that emphasizes the universal fatherhood of God and the final salvation of all souls.

---

universalism ¹ British  

/ ˌjuːnɪˈvɜːsəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. a universal feature or characteristic

2. another word for universality

3. social welfare the principle that welfare services should be available to all by right, according to need, and not restricted by individual ability to pay, but funded by general contributions through taxes, rates, or national insurance payments

---

Universalism ² British  

/ ˌjuːnɪˈvɜːsəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. a system of religious beliefs maintaining that all men are predestined for salvation

---

Other Word Forms

• Universalist noun

Etymology

Origin of universalism

First recorded in 1795–1805; universal + -ism

Example Sentences

“They will be Palestinian New Yorkers in Bay Ridge who will no longer have to contend with a politics that speaks of universalism and then makes them the exception.”

From Slate • Jan. 3, 2026

Habsburg universalism rested on the Catholic Church, the symbolic order of the Holy Roman Empire and the use of Latin as the “neutral language of administration.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 26, 2025

"The broad universalism standing at the center of the Gospel makes brotherhood morally inescapable," he said at a conference on Christian faith.

From Salon • Oct. 18, 2024

While focusing on all students, the foundation is also tailoring some of its offerings to particular student groups — a principle called targeted universalism.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 22, 2024

But the later development presupposes neither his clear formulation nor his peculiar establishment of universalism, but only the universalism itself.

From History of Dogma, Volume 1 (of 7) by Buchanan, Neil