Abolitionist
adj, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A person favoring or advocating for the abolition of any particular institution or practice.
"Both feminist and religiously inspired abolitionists have long viewed, and continue to view, male demand for commercial sex as a root cause of prostitution."
- 2 a reformer who favors abolishing slavery wordnet
- 3 A person favoring or advocating for the abolition of any particular institution or practice.; A person favoring or advocating for the abolition of slavery. US, especially, historical
"Among other slave notabilities of the plantation, was one called by everybody Uncle Isaac Copper. It is seldom that a slave gets a surname from anybody in Maryland; and so completely has the south shaped the manners of the north, in this respect, that even abolitionists make very little of the surname of a negro."
- 1 In favor of the abolition of any particular institution or practice.
- 2 In favor of the abolition of any particular institution or practice.; In favor of the abolition of slavery. historical
"This case, and others, drove and enlarged the existing abolitionist movement in the country, opposed, of course, by the merchants and plantation owners who were making a massive profit from the slaves held in various colonies."
Antonyms
All antonymsExample
More examples"Of necessity, as well as of choice, I am a "Garrisonian" Abolitionist—the most unpopular appellation that any man can have applied to him, in the present state of public sentiment; yet, I am more than confident, destined ultimately to be honourably regarded by the wise and good."
Etymology
First attested in 1788. abolition + -ist.
More for "abolitionist"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.