What does "maximalist" mean?
A person with maximalist beliefs or tendencies; someone who prefers redundancy or excess, especially in the arts.
Maximalist
adj, noun
adj, noun ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person with maximalist beliefs or tendencies; someone who prefers redundancy or excess, especially in the arts.
- Grammar: maximalist is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: advocate, ambitious, busy, comprehensive.
- Useful contrasts: minimalist, minimalist art, minimalist lifestyle.
- Usage evidence: This, his [Frank Stella's] second Museum of Modern Art retrospective, shows him in his second incarnation, turning his back on Minimalist rationality and opting for a “maximalist,” seemingly free-wheeling Baroque complexity that helped set the stage for New-Expressionism.
How to use "maximalist"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "maximalist" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
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- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "maximalist" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "maximalist" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
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Final meaning check
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person with maximalist beliefs or tendencies; someone who prefers redundancy or excess, especially in the arts.
"Concerning his own purpose in making music, Mr. Babbitt says he would call himself a maximalist: “I try to make music as much as it has ever been or as much as it could be. I may try to put too much into a piece. […]”"
- 2 Alternative letter-case form of maximalist. alt-of
- 3 A supporter of an aggressive or expansive foreign policy.
"But on the larger issues, the range of opinion on the best solution runs the gamut from the so‐called hawks, or “maximalists,” as they have come to be known, and the doves, or “minimalists.” The first group would have Israel keep most of the Arab territory she now occupies, and would postpone any significant action on the Palestinian claims until after an over‐all peace agreement was reached with the Arab states."
- 4 A proponent of Biblical maximalism, one who affirms the historicity of central Biblical narratives.
"The first is reported to represent the secretariat's attempted compromise between the “maximalists” and those who see the further aggrandizement of the cult of Mary as a further obstacle to a dialogue with the Protestants."
- 5 A Bolshevik. capitalized, historical, obsolete
"After a firm opening and an hour of fairly well sustained strength the stock market once more suffered a wide break yesterday following the receipt of the news of the overthrow of Kerensky and the announced intention of the Maximalists to propose an immediate peace with Germany."
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 A member of a radical wing split from the Russian Socialist Revolutionary Party in 1906. historical
- 7 A member of a radical Marxist party in Italy. historical
"“Maximalists,” as radical Marxists are called here, and anarchists have always had great influence in Italy's trade‐union movement."
Adjective
- 1 Preferring redundancy; tending to do or provide more rather than less.
"This, his [Frank Stella's] second Museum of Modern Art retrospective, shows him in his second incarnation, turning his back on Minimalist rationality and opting for a “maximalist,” seemingly free-wheeling Baroque complexity that helped set the stage for New-Expressionism."
- 2 Alternative letter-case form of maximalist. alt-of
- 3 Aggressive, expansive.
"Mr. Schmidt agreed that “both the Russians and the Americans want results,” but he warned that they have a long way to go from “maximalist” starting positions."
- 4 Relating to religious or Biblical maximalism.
"Again, the progressive view was that the Mother of Jesus should receive all veneration for holiness, but not the title of mediator between God and man. Much of the Curia supported a “maximalist” cult of the Virgin."
- 5 Relating to far-left communism. historical
"His inclusion in the official delegation to Moscow caused surprise today and was seen as indicative of the Italian Communists' aversion to Maximalist currents in international communism."
Antonyms
Example
"This, his [Frank Stella's] second Museum of Modern Art retrospective, shows him in his second incarnation, turning his back on Minimalist rationality and opting for a “maximalist,” seemingly free-wheeling Baroque complexity that helped set the stage for New-Expressionism."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "maximalist"?
Common synonyms include: advocate, ambitious, busy, comprehensive, enthusiast, extensive.
How do you use "maximalist" in a sentence?
This, his [Frank Stella's] second Museum of Modern Art retrospective, shows him in his second incarnation, turning his back on Minimalist rationality and opting for a “maximalist,” seemingly free-wheeling Baroque complexity that helped set the stage for New-Expressionism.
Etymology
From maximal + -ist, by analogy with minimalist.