anti-intellectualism

American  

[an-tee-in-tl-ek-choo-uh-liz-uhm, an-tahy-] / ˌæn tiˌɪn tlˈɛk tʃu əˌlɪz əm, ˌæn taɪ- /

noun

1. opposition to or hostility toward intellectuals and the modern academic, artistic, social, religious, and other theories associated with them.

   These “denial” movements are manifestations of a growing anti-intellectualism arising against science and scientists.

2. the belief or doctrine that intellect and reason are less important than actions and emotions in solving practical problems and understanding reality.

   Much of the country’s cultural history reflects a swinging back and forth between collective action and a rugged individualism based on anti-intellectualism.

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Etymology

Origin of anti-intellectualism

anti- ( def. ) + intellectualism

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

anti-intellectualism

In the 1960s, political scientist Richard Hofstadter wrote that America had periodically been swept by waves of conformist anti-intellectualism:

From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2025

“There is growing in this country a wave of anti-intellectualism which is violently opposed to free speech and free expression,” he said.

From Slate ● Mar. 17, 2025

This idea may not seem all that radical, but anti-intellectualism runs deep in the American theater.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2023

Delivering swift, stinging kicks to everything from anti-intellectualism to the excesses of celebrity culture, social media and infotainment-ized news, “Don’t Look Up” eventually goes deeper than cheap and easy snark.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 7, 2021

Fascist anti-intellectualism holds in scorn a product peculiarly typical of the educated classes in Italy: the leterato—the man who plays with knowledge and with thought without any sense of responsibility for the practical world.

From Readings on Fascism and National Socialism Selected by members of the department of philosophy, University of Colorado by Various