doctrinaire
Americannoun
adjective
-
dogmatic about others' acceptance of one's ideas; fanatical.
a doctrinaire preacher.
- Synonyms:
- unyielding, inflexible, uncompromising, authoritarian
- Antonyms:
- flexible, reasonable
-
merely theoretical; impractical.
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of a doctrinaire.
adjective
-
stubbornly insistent on the observation of the niceties of a theory, esp without regard to practicality, suitability, etc
-
theoretical; impractical
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of doctrinaire
From French, dating back to 1810–20; see origin at doctrine, -aire
Explanation
You've doubtless met someone doctrinaire at some point. You know them by their complete unwillingness to accept any belief other than their own. If you're familiar with the noun "doctrine" — a formal idea or system of belief — you'll have no problem with the adjective doctrinaire. It's a just a way of describing a person or group of people who are set in their ways. Parents can start out doctrinaire, but children soon force them to be flexible in how they bring them up.
Vocabulary lists containing doctrinaire
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The Picture of Dorian Gray
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English Words Derived from French, List 8
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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.
The aim was to expand U.S. influence in Europe, promote ideas suppressed behind the Iron Curtain and, more specifically, expose Soviet culture as staid and doctrinaire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
And they’ve been trying to have a conversation that isn’t hijacked by the most doctrinaire voices in the room.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
"The modernism that was around before the 1980s was very grey, restrictive, utilitarian and quite doctrinaire really," Farrell said.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2025
After State Department officials raised the legal issue in one situation room meeting, Kissinger said scornfully: "We shouldn't decide this on such doctrinaire grounds."
From Salon ● Dec. 10, 2023
It will gain in utility and grace what it loses in pride, ambition, and doctrinaire pedantry.
From God and the State by Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
