anti-mask

American  

[an-tee-mask, an-tahy-] / ˈæn tiˌmæsk, ˈæn taɪ- /

Or antimask

adjective

1. Also anti-masking being or relating to legislation prohibiting any form of concealment of the face in public.

   Between the 1920s and 1950s, more than a dozen U.S. states passed anti-mask legislation in response to activities of the Ku Klux Klan.

2. being or relating to a person or group that resists wearing a mask over the nose and mouth to prevent the spread of infection, or that opposes the mandatory wearing of such masks, as during a pandemic.

   An anti-mask protest outside our local high school triggered a precautionary lockdown at three other schools.

   You won’t win your staunchly anti-mask friends over by shaming them.

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Other Word Forms

• anti-masker noun
• antimasker noun

Etymology

Origin of anti-mask

First recorded in 1915–20; anti- ( def. ) + mask ( def. )

Example Sentences

Allie Bohm, senior policy counsel at the New York Civil Liberties Union, which has opposed all iterations of state’s anti-mask law, argued that protesters today simply face greater repercussions for airing their beliefs: “The risks of being doxed in the digital age are qualitatively different than they used to be, and people may not feel comfortable speaking out at the risk of being identified.”

From Slate

It was seized on by anti-mask proponents following a May 2021 paper by French scientists, who worried about an infection rebound among children who did not get the full complement of childhood vaccines during the pandemic and were susceptible to common pathogens.

From Washington Post

A candidate for local office who was harassed by election deniers and anti-mask activists wins her race for county registrar of voters.

From Los Angeles Times

I live in a part of eastern Pennsylvania where anti-mask protests have been common and anti-vaccine sentiment strong.

From Washington Post

I witnessed zero anti-mask tantrums.

From Los Angeles Times