What does "protectionist" mean?

Someone who believes in protecting domestic producers by impeding or limiting the importation of foreign goods and services via actions taken by government.

Protectionist

Q: What is a synonym for "protectionist"?

Common synonyms include: beggar thy neighbor, beggar-thy-neighbor, censor, illiberal, monopolist, procontrol.

adj, noun

adj, noun ·4 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
Someone who believes in protecting domestic producers by impeding or limiting the importation of foreign goods and services via actions taken by government.
"It also would cut deeply into the trans-Atlantic alliance at the worst possible time by giving anti-American, anti-capitalist nationalists and protectionists in Europe a platform to thrive. Anti-American sentiment will grow, and Europe risks a retreat to protectionism. Those of us who make the case for the trans-Atlantic alliance will have a much harder job."
2
an advocate of protectionism wordnet
3
A linguistic purist.

Adjective

1
Of or pertaining to protectionism, or an advocate thereof.
"This is because most member countries still hold a very much protectionist stance when it comes to the service sector."

Synonyms

All synonyms

beggar thy neighbor beggar-thy-neighbor censor illiberal monopolist procontrol

Antonyms

All antonyms

free-trade liberal neoliberal nonprotectionist

Example

More examples

"It is difficult to summarize all the steps by which, in seven years, Orbán builds a regime where the people become less free, more dependent on the state, more nationalistic and protectionist."

Etymology

Borrowed from French protectionniste, equivalent to protection + -ist.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.