Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of reformist
Explanation
In politics, someone who believes that a government or economy should be improved through gradual changes is a reformist. Reformists tend to focus on working within existing systems and pushing through small changes over time, even if they believe those systems need major repair and reform. In politics, they are often compared with revolutionaries, who advocate for completely overhauling broken governments or societies and replacing them with something new. The Latin root of reformist is reformare, "to form again."
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.
Rations were further curtailed in 2008, when reformist ex-president Raul Castro eliminated what he called "undue subsidies and freebies" such as cigars, toothpaste and oil.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Appointed vice premier under then-leader Jiang Zemin in 1991, he found himself nicknamed China's Mikhail Gorbachev after the reformist former president of the Soviet Union.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
Russia’s reformist path, the author contends, ended due to “a confluence of bizarre events and incredible twists.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and later became a reformist politician pushing for environmental protections and women’s rights.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
Yet an ugliness often lurked beneath the reformist zeal of Progressivism.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
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.
