Hobbesian

American  

[hob-zee-uhn] / ˈhɒb zi ən /

noun

1. a person who believes in or advocates the principles of Thomas Hobbes.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or recalling the principles of Thomas Hobbes.

Etymology

Origin of Hobbesian

First recorded in 1770–80; Hobbes + -ian

Example Sentences

In particular, he sharpens our image of the Hobbesian Thucydides, who founded the realist theory of international relations.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

In Hobbesian terms, life in a Fincher film tends to be solitary and poor, nasty and brutish, if not necessarily short.

From New York Times • Nov. 9, 2023

The Davids are justified in accusing Pinker, who scolds the rest of us for being insufficiently rational and scientific, of ignoring data contradicting his Hobbesian outlook.

From Scientific American • Feb. 28, 2022

Clyde’s worldview can be summed up in the Hobbesian phrase “nasty, brutish and short.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 6, 2022

The ants and termites have renounced the "Hobbesian war," and they are the better for it.

From Mutual Aid; a factor of evolution by Kropotkin, Petr Alekseevich, kniaz