unionism

American  

[yoon-yuh-niz-uhm] / ˈjun jəˌnɪz əm /

noun

1. the principle of union, especially trade unionism.

2. attachment to a union.

3. (initial capital letter) loyalty to the federal union of the United States of America, especially at the time of the Civil War.

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unionism ¹ British  

/ ˈjuːnjəˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. the principles of trade unions

2. adherence to the principles of trade unions

3. the principle or theory of any union

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unionism ² British  

/ ˈjuːnjəˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. (sometimes not capital) the principles or adherence to the principles of Unionists

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Other Word Forms

• prounionism
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of unionism

First recorded in 1835–45; union + -ism

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

unionism

Lockhart said the decision was a "massive victory for unionism and loyalism".

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Hailed as a victory for Mr. Cameron’s Tory unionism, the vote to stay was 55% to 45%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

In an email to DUP members Robinson said he wanted to "reflect the desire across grassroots unionism to see unionist representatives and their political parties working together to promote the union".

From BBC ● Jan. 17, 2026

In 1905, the Industrial Workers of the World rejected the AFL’s narrow craft unionism, calling for one big union uniting all workers to abolish wage labor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 30, 2025

The place smelled of their beer and hair tonic, their punch-clock misery, their frayed nerves, their trade unionism.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

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