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Synonyms

anarchism

American  
[an-er-kiz-uhm] / ˈæn ərˌkɪz əm /

noun

  1. a doctrine urging the abolition of government or governmental restraint as the indispensable condition for full social and political liberty.

  2. the methods or practices of anarchists, as the use of violence to undermine government.

  3. anarchy.

anarchism British  
/ ˈænəˌkɪzəm /

noun

  1. political theory a doctrine advocating the abolition of government

  2. the principles or practice of anarchists

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
anarchism Cultural  

  1. The belief that all existing governmental authority should be abolished and replaced by free cooperation among individuals.

Discover More

Anarchy is sometimes used to refer to any state of chaos or lawlessness.

Other Word Forms

  • proanarchism noun
  • semianarchism noun

Etymology

Origin of anarchism

First recorded in 1635–45; anarch(y) + -ism

Compare meaning

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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.

Other themes included veganism – total avoidance of any animal food or products – and anarchism.

From BBC • Feb. 20, 2025

It is funny that the connection between punk and anarchism is kind of manufactured, but then becomes a popular political movement across the world.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 10, 2023

I was studying — like everybody else those days — Marxism, anarchism.

From New York Times • Feb. 20, 2023

They believed government should be abolished, an ideology known as anarchism.

From Textbooks • Dec. 14, 2022

Just last week, she had tried setting me up with Raizel Ackermann on the first floor, in a dinner that had exploded into a heated argument over anarchism.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

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.