survivalist

[ser-vahy-vuh-list]

noun

1. a person who makes preparations to survive a widespread catastrophe, as an atomic war or anarchy, especially by storing food and weapons in a safe place.

survivalist

/ səˈvaɪvəlɪst /

noun

1. 1. a person who believes in ensuring his personal survival of a catastrophic event by arming himself and often by living in the wild

   2. ( as modifier )

      survivalist weapons

Other Word Forms

• survivalism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of survivalist¹

First recorded in 1965–70; survival + -ist

Example Sentences

You could panic and tell everyone in this apartment complex, which could start an organized survivalist effort, which could result in the riots you just told me about.

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Such debates are the heart of the Western’s tableau, stories that ultimately come down to survivalist clashes of will and character, determining who gets to shape a culture’s story.

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“Eden” is probably closer to an expensive reality show about mismatched survivalists.

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Without their love story, we might never have seen Bill as anything other than a belligerent survivalist and eternal curmudgeon Joel knew him to be.

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The present-day Pacific Northwest has a prominent survivalist streak along with a healthy number of, shall we say, weird faith clubs.

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