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• nihilism
  nihilism

  noun

  total rejection of established laws and institutions.
• Nihilism
  Nihilism

  noun

  (in tsarist Russia) any of several revolutionary doctrines that upheld terrorism

nihilism

American  

[nahy-uh-liz-uhm, nee-] / ˈnaɪ əˌlɪz əm, ˈni- /

noun

1. total rejection of established laws and institutions.

2. anarchy, terrorism, or other revolutionary activity.

3. total and absolute destructiveness, especially toward the world at large and including oneself.

   the power-mad nihilism that marked Hitler's last years.

4. Philosophy.

   1. an extreme form of skepticism: the denial of all real existence or the possibility of an objective basis for truth.

   2. nothingness or nonexistence.

5. (sometimes initial capital letter) the principles of a Russian revolutionary group, active in the latter half of the 19th century, holding that existing social and political institutions must be destroyed in order to clear the way for a new state of society and employing extreme measures, including terrorism and assassination.

6. annihilation of the self, or the individual consciousness, especially as an aspect of mystical experience.

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Nihilism ¹ British  

/ ˈnaɪɪˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. (in tsarist Russia) any of several revolutionary doctrines that upheld terrorism

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nihilism ² British  

/ ˈnaɪɪˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. a complete denial of all established authority and institutions

2. philosophy an extreme form of scepticism that systematically rejects all values, belief in existence, the possibility of communication, etc

3. a revolutionary doctrine of destruction for its own sake

4. the practice or promulgation of terrorism

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nihilism Cultural  

1. An approach to philosophy that holds that human life is meaningless and that all religions, laws, moral codes, and political systems are thoroughly empty and false. The term is from the Latin nihil, meaning “nothing.”

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Other Word Forms

• antinihilism
  noun
• antinihilist
  noun
• nihilist
  noun
• nihilistic
  adjective
• nonnihilism
  noun
• nonnihilist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of nihilism

First recorded in 1810–20; from Latin nihil “nothing” (variant of nihilum; see nil) + -ism

Explanation

If you're one of those people who believe there's nothing worth believing in, your doctrine is nihilism. In philosophy, nihilism is the complete rejection of moral values and religious beliefs. It is such a negative outlook that it denies any meaning or purpose in life. In political theory, nihilism is carried to an even greater extreme, arguing for the destruction of all existing political and social institutions. The term nihilism was borrowed from German Nihilismus, since the doctrine was developed by the German philosopher Friedrich Jacobi. The German word is formed from Latin nihil, "nothing" plus the suffix –ismus, "a doctrine or theory."

Example Sentences

There is a tendency among even the most committed adherents to the rule of law to respond with “Nothing is gonna change” nihilism to even big legal wins.

From Slate • Mar. 4, 2026

So can we declare Gen Z financial nihilism a myth, at least among young men?

From MarketWatch • Jan. 15, 2026

Without “cultural invention as a potential countervailing force,” the counter-counterculture filled the vacuum with the vulgar nihilism of digital norm evasion.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025

But as Kwan shows, such visions of the future are the refractions of nihilism and the American belief that individual survival and success is due solely to individual effort.

From Los Angeles Times • May 9, 2025

In an ecological version of therapeutic nihilism, they want to leave the river basin to its own devices.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Related Words

• anarchy
• atheism
• lawlessness