classicism

American  

[klas-uh-siz-uhm] / ˈklæs əˌsɪz əm /

Also classicalism

noun

1. the principles or styles characteristic of the literature and art of ancient Greece and Rome.

2. adherence to such principles.

3. the classical style in literature and art, or adherence to its principles (contrasted with romanticism).

4. a Greek or Latin idiom or form, especially one used in some other language.

5. classical scholarship or learning.

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classicism British  

/ ˈklæsɪˌsɪzəm, ˈklæsɪkəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. a style based on the study of Greek and Roman models, characterized by emotional restraint and regularity of form, associated esp with the 18th century in Europe; the antithesis of romanticism Compare neoclassicism

2. knowledge or study of the culture of ancient Greece and Rome

3. 1. a Greek or Latin form or expression

   2. an expression in a modern language, such as English, that is modelled on a Greek or Latin form

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classicism Cultural  

1. An approach to aesthetics that favors restraint, rationality, and the use of strict forms in literature, painting, architecture, and other arts. It flourished in ancient Greece and Rome, and throughout Europe in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Classicists often derived their models from the ancient Greeks and Romans.

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Discover More

Classicism is sometimes considered the opposite of romanticism.

Other Word Forms

• anticlassicalism
  noun
• anticlassicism
  noun
• classicistic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of classicism

First recorded in 1820–30; classic + -ism

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

classicism

Its asymmetrical, free-form plate-glass top rests on a base made of two identical, U-shaped wooden legs —a configuration that blurs distinctions between primitivism and classicism, the organic and the engineered, furniture and art.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

With sculptures by Daniel Chester French, the monument on the eastern edge of Central Park is a work of serene classicism that puts architecture on the same level as fine art.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 10, 2026

Later in Lucerne, he took master classes with Edwin Fischer, the musician credited by Brendel with having the most enduring influence on him, and teaching him to play passionately within the bounds of classicism.

From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2025

The artist, now 89, draws from the improvisatory impulses of jazz, the power of Abstract Expressionism, the eclectic excessiveness of assemblage and the academic classicism of Renaissance painting.

From New York Times ● Mar. 28, 2024

Everett was showily classical, but Lincoln’s classicism purrs powerfully under the hood.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Related Words

• grandeur