secularist
gb/sˈɛkjəlɚɪst/ us/sˈɛkjəlɚɪst/
C1
English
Senses
0 senses
Noun
C1
role
1
Advocate of secularism
A person who thinks religion should be separate from government and public life.
Usage pattern:
a secularist; secularists; [someone] is a secularist
Common mistake:
Do not use secularist simply to mean any non-religious person; it usually suggests support for secularism as a public or political principle.
Synonyms
separationist (especially someone who supports separation of church and state)
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secular humanist (often also implies a human-centered ethical worldview, not just a political position)
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freethinker (broader and somewhat older term for someone who rejects traditional religious authority)
Antonyms
theocrat (someone who supports government by religious authority or religious law)
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clericalist (someone who supports strong religious or clergy influence in politics and society)
Collocations
committed secularist
|leading secularist
|prominent secularist
|liberal secularist
|French secularist
|secularist campaigner
|secularist argument
|secularist movement
|secularist organization
|secularist values
Themes
politics
|religion
|society
|law
Examples
- As a secularist, she argued that public schools should not promote any particular religion.
- The mayor is a committed secularist but regularly meets with faith leaders on community issues.
- Secularists welcomed the court ruling as a victory for religious neutrality in government.
Learner examples
- He is a secularist and supports the separation of religion and government.
- Many secularists want public laws to be based on non-religious reasons.
adjective
C1
property
2
Supporting secularism
Used to describe ideas, groups, or policies that support keeping religion separate from government.
Usage pattern:
secularist [movement/party/argument/policy]
Common mistake:
Use secular, not secularist, for the general meaning “not religious” in phrases like secular music or secular education, unless you mean support for secularism.
Synonyms
secular (more general; can mean simply non-religious, not necessarily actively supporting secularism)
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nonreligious (describes absence of religion rather than a political principle)
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church-state separationist (more explicit, especially in U.S. political contexts)
Antonyms
theocratic (favoring government based on religious authority or law)
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clerical (relating to clergy or religious authority; opposite when it implies clerical influence over public life)
Collocations
secularist party
|secularist movement
|secularist ideology
|secularist principles
|secularist argument
|secularist policy
|secularist campaign
|secularist tradition
|secularist view
|secularist state
Themes
politics
|religion
|society
Examples
- The party adopted a strongly secularist platform after the revolution.
- Critics said the proposal reflected a secularist view of education.
- The newspaper has long supported secularist principles in public policy.
Learner examples
- The group has a secularist policy on schools.
- They support a secularist view of government.
Grammar
Dictionary form
secularist
IPA
GB/sˈɛkjəlɚɪst/
US/sˈɛkjəlɚɪst/
Syllables & stress
sec - u - lar - ist (4 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (sec)
Word forms
Adjective
- Base: secularist
- Comparative: secularister
- Superlative: secularistest
Noun
- Base: secularist
- Plural: secularists
Expressions
No expressions linked to this entry yet.