anti-intellectual

American  

[an-tee-in-tl-ek-choo-uhl, an-tahy‑] / ˌæn tiˌɪn tlˈɛk tʃu əl, ˌæn taɪ‑ /

Also anti-intellectualist

noun

1. a person opposed to or hostile toward intellectuals and the modern academic, artistic, social, religious, and other theories associated with them.

2. a person who believes that intellect and reason are less important than actions and emotions in solving practical problems and understanding reality.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of anti-intellectuals or their beliefs.

Other Word Forms

• anti-intellectualism
  noun
• anti-intellectuality
  noun
• anti-intellectualistic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of anti-intellectual

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

Which, as long as we’ve mentioned actual media outlets, perhaps we owe a brief moment of silence to that question of Where Kids Are Getting Their News These Days.

From Washington Post • Dec. 19, 2014

Only 38 of the 2,500 survivors examined mentioned actual contact with sharks.

From Time Magazine Archive