leftist
Americannoun
adjective
adjective
noun
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Etymology
Origin of leftist
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Explanation
In politics, a leftist is someone who tends to support progressive or socialist ideas. Leftists generally favor bigger government and policies that result in economic and social equality. This political term, in use since the late 19th century, is from left, a word that came to mean "the democratic or liberal party." This meaning goes back to the seating arrangement of legislators in the Estates General during the French Revolution: those seated on the left supported the revolution, and came to be called la gauche, or "the left." Leftists is just another way to describe anyone with progressive or liberal political beliefs.
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.
Raman is more likely than Bass to pick up the voters who chose community organizer Rae Huang, a leftist who, like Raman, is a DSA member.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 10, 2026
Every neighborhood that Raman won was taken by Bass during the primary in 2022, though Viola, a leftist candidate that year, also did well in these precincts compared with other parts of the city.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2026
Peru's right-wing presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori promised on Sunday to crack down on crime, while leftist Roberto Sanchez vowed to tackle the "political mafia," in the final debate before the country's June 7 runoff election.
From Barron's • Jun. 1, 2026
He won elections as a congressman and then senator before becoming the top adviser to Colombia’s first leftist president, Gustavo Petro.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
The animating figure was Caltech chemist Linus Pauling, a Nobel laureate known for his strong leftist views and stem-winding oratorical flair.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
