populist
noun
a supporter or adherent of populism.
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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:
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
There’s an equivalency with Platner, and some of it has to do with a populist style of politics.
From Salon ● Jul. 10, 2026
Far-right populist Abelardo de la Espriella was narrowly elected president of Colombia, receiving 49.6% of ballots cast.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Shaw has framed her campaign as a populist effort against a failed and self-interested status quo establishment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
The tumult of 1848—the bloody populist revolutions that swept fiercely through France, Denmark, Germany, and Austria and overturned social, political, and religious orders—largely passed him by, like distant thunder.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Populist Peter Pellegrini has been elected president of Slovakia, succeeding the liberal Zuzana Caputova.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2024
Populist, pomposity-puncturing and patriotic, Murdoch’s tabloids undeniably had flair.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 22, 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
Populist civilian leader Zulfikar Ali Bhutto took charge after that debacle, holding sway over the army for five years.
From Reuters ● May 22, 2023
For many African American voters, the Populist approach was preferable to the paternalism of liberals.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
At the same time, I would remind the victorious populists to look up in the sky and remember their Shakespeare.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
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
In the first round, Torres’ competition came mostly from other conservative populists.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 12, 2023
It became evident to both Democrats and populists that the Negro vote had become the deciding vote in many states.
From The Black Experience in America by Coombs, Norman
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.
