textualist

American  

[teks-choo-uh-list] / ˈtɛks tʃu ə lɪst /

noun

1. a person who adheres closely to a text, especially of the Scriptures.

2. a person who is well versed in the text of the Scriptures.

3. 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.

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Etymology

Origin of textualist

First recorded in 1620–30; textual + -ist

Example Sentences

She is no longer just questioning the court’s application of textualist theories; she’s rejecting the majority’s very approach to the law.

From Slate • Mar. 4, 2026

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