anti-intellectual

American  

[an-tee-in-tl-ek-choo-uhl, an-tahy‑] / ˌæn tiˌɪn tlˈɛk tʃu əl, ˌæn taɪ‑ /

Also anti-intellectualist

noun

1. a person opposed to or hostile toward intellectuals and the modern academic, artistic, social, religious, and other theories associated with them.

2. a person who believes that intellect and reason are less important than actions and emotions in solving practical problems and understanding reality.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of anti-intellectuals or their beliefs.

Other Word Forms

• anti-intellectualism noun
• anti-intellectualistic adjective
• anti-intellectuality noun

Etymology

Origin of anti-intellectual

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

That anti-intellectual tradition is still with us, of course, and traces back to the Puritans' culture of the simple.

From Salon

Many of us are anti-intellectual and don't want to think.

From Salon

“Maybe if you’d done your job, we wouldn’t need to live in a dome,” Ray huffs to his petulant, anti-intellectual roommate.

From New York Times

Outsiders often think of Los Angeles as an anti-intellectual place, all Hollywood glitz and no substance, but writers have always been drawn to my hometown.

From New York Times

It’s more that the behavior of these social media hordes represents an anti-democratic, anti-intellectual mind-set that is harmful to the cause of art and antithetical to the spirit of movies.

From New York Times