nonviolence

[non-vahy-uh-luh ns]

See more synonyms for nonviolence on Thesaurus.com

noun

absence or lack of violence; state or condition of avoiding violence.
the policy, practice, or technique of refraining from the use of violence, especially when reacting to or protesting against oppression, injustice, discrimination, or the like.

Compare passive resistance.

Origin of nonviolence

First recorded in 1915–20; non- + violence

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for nonviolence

Contemporary Examples

Abbas has been committed—quite unsuccessfully, but nevertheless committed—to nonviolence.
After the Israel Synagogue Massacre: A New Intifada?
Michael Tomasky
November 19, 2014
This is why nonviolence is a powerful as well as a just weapon.
Alex Haley’s 1965 Playboy Interview with Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Alex Haley
January 19, 2014
I saw there, I felt there, for the first time, the pride and the power of nonviolence.
Alex Haley’s 1965 Playboy Interview with Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Alex Haley
January 19, 2014
“Our policy to achieve a nonracial state by nonviolence had achieved nothing,” he concluded.
Anger at the Heart of Nelson Mandela’s Violent Struggle
Christopher Dickey
December 6, 2013
But the Palestinians have not yet produced “a Mandela,” a leader truly dedicated to nonviolence and the two state solution.
Why Do People Keep Calling Israel an Apartheid State When It’s Not?
Peter Beinart
May 3, 2013

Historical Examples

Nonviolence is the natural outgrowth of the law of forgiveness and love.
Autobiography of a YOGI
Paramhansa Yogananda
He believed in nonviolence and the sanctity of life—until the first test, when he had killed without hesitation.
Planet of the Damned
Harry Harrison
Nonviolence is essential to these people—they have vitality without needing destruction.
Planet of the Damned
Harry Harrison
It takes a fairly strenuous course of training to attain a mental state of nonviolence.
Autobiography of a YOGI
Paramhansa Yogananda
Every problem would lend itself to solution if we determined to make the law of truth and nonviolence the law of life.
Autobiography of a YOGI
Paramhansa Yogananda

British Dictionary definitions for nonviolence

nonviolence

noun

abstention from the use of physical force to achieve goals

Derived Formsnonviolent, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

nonviolence

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Related Words

Examples from the Web for nonviolence

Contemporary Examples

Abbas has been committed—quite unsuccessfully, but nevertheless committed—to nonviolence.

This is why nonviolence is a powerful as well as a just weapon.

I saw there, I felt there, for the first time, the pride and the power of nonviolence.

“Our policy to achieve a nonracial state by nonviolence had achieved nothing,” he concluded.

But the Palestinians have not yet produced “a Mandela,” a leader truly dedicated to nonviolence and the two state solution.

Historical Examples

Nonviolence is the natural outgrowth of the law of forgiveness and love.

He believed in nonviolence and the sanctity of life—until the first test, when he had killed without hesitation.

Nonviolence is essential to these people—they have vitality without needing destruction.

It takes a fairly strenuous course of training to attain a mental state of nonviolence.

Every problem would lend itself to solution if we determined to make the law of truth and nonviolence the law of life.

nonviolence

Origin of nonviolence