populist
noun
a supporter or adherent of populism.
populist
American
[pop-yuh-list]
/ ˈpɒp jə lɪst /
noun
-
populists
plural
-
a supporter or adherent of populism.
-
(initial capital letter) a member of the People's party.
adjective
-
Also populistic. of, relating to, or characteristic of populism or its adherents.
-
(initial capital letter) Also Populistic. of or relating to the People's party.
Populist
1
British
/ ˈpɒpjʊlɪst /
noun
adjective
populist
2
British
/ ˈpɒpjʊlɪst /
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of populist
An Americanism first recorded in 1890–95; from Latin popul(us) “people” ( cf. people, popular) + -ist
Explanation
Use the noun populist to describe a person — especially a politician or activist — who works to give regular working people a voice in their government. In politics, the word populist refers to someone who puts ordinary people's rights above those of the wealthy and powerful. It is basically a synonym of democrat, which when spelled with a lower-case d is simply a person who believes in democratic principles of rule by the people, freedom, and equality. The root of populist is the Latin word for "people," populus.
Vocabulary lists containing populist
We the People: Popul
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Unit 1, Small-Group Learning
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Content Summary 6.7: Impact of Contemporary Globalization
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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.
See Examples For:
"Shortsighted or populist reactions to underlying business challenges are not the answer," Ashley said in the letter.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Tucker, the Democratic candidate for agriculture commissioner, is a fifth-generation Texan who ties his campaign to Texas’ populist movement and focuses on issues that receive the most petition signatures on his website.
From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026
During a debate about New Zealand's response to the Covid pandemic on Wednesday, populist NZ First leader Peters was asked by China-born Green Party member Lawrence Xu-Nan: "Are you vaccinated?"
From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026
In some large counties, Jackson won every delegate at stake as a plurality of convention attendees simply voted for the populist Democrat’s slate.
From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026
Indeed, it is possible to date the chasm that was to develop between the populist mainstream and the classical avant-garde in music to this place and time.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
Evangelical leaders “helped to organize the Populist revolt of the 1880s and 1890s” and others “urged Texans to see the sins of our economic system,” he said.
From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026
Populist Peter Pellegrini has been elected president of Slovakia, succeeding the liberal Zuzana Caputova.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2024
The incident was covered at the time by a local media outlet, The Lost Coast Populist, but wasn’t picked up by national outlets until Wednesday.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 14, 2023
The natural leader of the Populist Party was the Farmers’ Alliance leader, Leonidas L. Polk, who presided over the meeting that created the party.
From Slate ● Jul. 3, 2023
With the rise of the Populist Party in 1892, farmers and laborers formed the first mass multiracial coalition in the country’s history.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Macron, who attended the country’s top schools, “has become the embodiment of everything populists hate,” said Olivier Costa, a research professor at the Paris-based Sciences Po university and France’s National Center for Scientific Research.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2026
These shamanistic masks have long been a mainstay of populists.
From Salon ● Mar. 17, 2025
The former valedictorian of an elite Baltimore prep school and Ivy League graduate shared posts on social media from an eclectic stream of populists, entrepreneurs, neuroscientists, centrists and disruptors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 14, 2024
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser warned "extremists and populists are stirring up a climate of increasing violence".
From BBC ● May 4, 2024
Yes," said Lyman, "but our friends, the populists, have enacted rather peculiar divorce laws.
From Old Ebenezer by Opie Percival Read
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.
