extremism
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of extremism
Explanation
Extremism is a political or religious philosophy that's very far from the mainstream. Because it's so different from the average person's politics. being an anarchist is often considered extremism. When someone's beliefs are considered to be extreme by most people — if they think, for example, that people should be executed for eating certain foods or using certain words — that person is said to practice extremism, and is labelled an extremist. These words are almost always used in a derogatory way, by people who see themselves as centrist or moderate. The Latin root is extremus, "outermost" or "farthest."
Vocabulary lists containing extremism
President Biden's Inaugural Speech (January 2021)
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"Ideas Live On" by Benazir Bhutto (2007)
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“Address to the United Nations Youth Assembly” by Malala Yousafzai
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The memoir is an account of escaping religious extremism and redefining herself apart from the mountains that raised her and the elite society to which she fled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
“We see them as intellectualizing or sanitizing radical-right ideas that are then taken up by the parties in power,” said Allchorn, the U.K. extremism expert.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
China vehemently denies these allegations, saying its policies have rooted out extremism in Xinjiang and boosted economic development.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
But Joe Mulhall, the research director of Hope not Hate, a campaign group focused on combating extremism on what they describe as the far right, has stronger words.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
I was slightly giddy with the force of his personality but the extremism of the offer was appealing as well.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
