Luddites

Cultural  

1. Opponents of the introduction of labor-saving machinery. The original Luddites, followers of a legendary Ned Ludd, were British laborers of the early nineteenth century who smashed textile-making machines that threatened their jobs.

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Contemporary opponents of technological change are sometimes called “Luddites.”

Example Sentences

In 1812 Luddites took hammers to knitting machines for fear of jobs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 22, 2026

Doctors didn’t grow hostile toward EHRs because they were Luddites; they were simply frustrated with tools that demanded too much and offered too little in return.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 8, 2026

What’s more, it’s a way to engage in a kind of history that points toward a different kind of world, without being accused of being Luddites or becoming toxic nostalgics.

From Slate • Feb. 21, 2025

De La Torre was never judgmental during our one-hour chat, and his final answer about Luddites like me was perfectly rational — even empathetic.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2023

The rioters assumed the name of Luddites, and their leader was known as General Lud.

From The Works of Lord Byron: Letters and Journals. Vol. 2 by Prothero, Rowland E. (Rowland Edmund), Baron Ernle