textualist
Americannoun
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a person who adheres closely to a text, especially of the Scriptures.
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a person who is well versed in the text of the Scriptures.
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Law. a person who adheres to the doctrine that a legal document or statute should be interpreted by determining the relatively objective ordinary meaning of its words and phrases.
Justice Hugo Black took a literal reading of the Bill of Rights, leading to his reputation as a textualist.
Etymology
Origin of textualist
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.
And in 2023, she joined his textualist concurrence in a case about artistic freedom.
From Slate • Jun. 23, 2025
According to the textualist position associated with the late Justice Antonin Scalia, legal words mean what they say.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2024
“Dune” made it clear that Villeneuve isn’t that kind of textualist.
From New York Times • Feb. 29, 2024
But it's also true that Frederick Douglass broke with Garrison, arguing that the Constitution made slavery illegitimate — and ironically enough, given today’s environment, made that argument on textualist and originalist grounds.
From Salon • Dec. 16, 2023
Tex′tuary, a textualist; Tex′tus, the authoritative text, esp. of the Bible.—Textus receptus, the received text of the Greek Testament.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various
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.
