denialism

American

[dih-nahy-uh-lizuhm] / dɪˈnaɪ əˌlɪzəm /

noun

to refuse to accept the existence, truth, or validity of something despite evidence or reasonable support for it.

Her cynical embrace of election denialism was part of her campaign strategy rather than a reflection of sincerely held concern for ballot security.

Usage

See denier ¹ ( def. ).

Etymology

Origin of denialism

First recorded in 1870–75; denial ( def. ) + -ism ( def. )

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.

See Examples For:

denialism

And at its most abhorrent, “Riefenstahl” reveals a pernicious denialism too significant to ignore.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2025

I must have seen the same ProPublica report about the company’s aggressive claim denialism 10 times that day.

From Slate ● May 14, 2025

Choosing to fight would require someone to change their lifestyle and make potentially challenging sacrifices, so it may be psychologically advantageous, in the short term, to "flee" by choosing climate denialism, Brosch said.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2025

"Right now, with denialism sadly on the rise, uncovering the whole truth is more important than ever."

From Reuters ● Sep. 30, 2023

Ducey said his approach to election denialism is to “address it with facts” and recognize that there are “very good people who have been misled.”

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 31, 2022

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023