doctrinaire

[dok-truh-nair]

See more synonyms for doctrinaire on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person who tries to apply some doctrine or theory without sufficient regard for practical considerations; an impractical theorist.

adjective

dogmatic about others' acceptance of one's ideas; fanatical: a doctrinaire preacher.
merely theoretical; impractical.
of, relating to, or characteristic of a doctrinaire.

Origin of doctrinaire

From French, dating back to 1810–20; see origin at doctrine, -aire

Related formsdoc·tri·nair·ism, nounnon·doc·tri·naire, adjectiveo·ver·doc·tri·naire, adjectiveun·doc·tri·naire, adjective

Can be confuseddoctrinal doctrinaire

Synonyms for doctrinaire

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2. authoritarian, uncompromising, inflexible, unyielding.

Antonyms for doctrinaire

2. reasonable, flexible.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for doctrinaire

authoritarian, authoritative, biased, bigoted, bullheaded, dictatorial, dogged, fanatical, impractical, inflexible, insistent, magisterial, mulish, obstinate, one-sided, pertinacious, pigheaded, rigid, speculative, stubborn

Examples from the Web for doctrinaire

Contemporary Examples of doctrinaire

Bachmann is so doctrinaire she seems unlikely to be a serious contender in the general election.
Michele, You’re No Reagan
Jack W. Germond
July 11, 2011
In this selective narrative, the only path to truth is doctrinaire conservatism.
Glenn Beck Declares War
John Avlon
February 20, 2010
Hatch pushed for justices from the “mainstream” rather than “doctrinaire liberals.”
Naming the Obama Court
Scott Horton
February 8, 2009

Historical Examples of doctrinaire

It has been well said of him that he never became either a pedant or a doctrinaire.
Erasmus and the Age of Reformation
Johan Huizinga
It is the hideous figure of the doctrinaire which Erasmus is thinking of.
Erasmus and the Age of Reformation
Johan Huizinga
To these, as a "forward" party, the doctrinaire theorists have allied themselves.
The New Society
Walther Rathenau
If his mind did not naturally work that way he would not be a Doctrinaire.
By the Christmas Fire
Samuel McChord Crothers
The Doctrinaire can never realize the fatal nature of the "too-much."
By the Christmas Fire
Samuel McChord Crothers

British Dictionary definitions for doctrinaire

doctrinaire

adjective

stubbornly insistent on the observation of the niceties of a theory, esp without regard to practicality, suitability, etc
theoretical; impractical

noun

a person who stubbornly attempts to apply a theory without regard to practical difficulties

Derived Formsdoctrinairism or doctrinarism, noundoctrinarian, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for doctrinaire

1820, from French doctrinaire "impractical person," originally "adherent of doctrines" (14c.), from Latin doctrina (see doctrine).

At first used in the context of French politics, contemptuously applied by rival factions to those who tried to reconcile liberty with royal authority after 1815. Hence, anyone who applies doctrine without making allowance for practical considerations (1831). As an adjective, from 1834.