environmentalist
Americannoun
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an expert on environmental problems.
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any person who advocates or works to protect the air, water, animals, plants, and other natural resources from pollution or its effects.
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a person who believes that differences between individuals or groups, especially in moral and intellectual attributes, are predominantly determined by environmental factors, as surroundings, upbringing, or experience (hereditarian ).
noun
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an adherent of environmentalism
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a person who is concerned with the maintenance of ecological balance and the conservation of the environment
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a person concerned with issues that affect the environment, such as pollution
Other Word Forms
- antienvironmentalist noun
- environmentalism noun
Etymology
Origin of environmentalist
First recorded in 1915–20; environmental ( def. ) + -ist
Compare meaning
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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.
However, he came under fire from environmentalists for backing a controversial oil-exploration project near the mouth of the Amazon River, which began in October.
From Barron's
This extraordinary man of parts was a novelist, nature writer, editor, environmentalist, political activist, outdoorsman and Zen master.
In the midst of Belém’s COP30 bedlam, environmentalists, economists, lobbyists and diplomats busily haggle at the global climate conference about what we can and cannot get away with in negotiations over Mother Nature.
From Los Angeles Times
Despite the warm reception Newsom has received in Belém, environmentalists in California have recently questioned his commitment.
From Los Angeles Times
It’s a major win for environmentalists and federal wildlife officials who want to protect northern spotted owls that have been crowded out by their larger, more aggressive cousins.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions 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.