Reactionary Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

The meaning of REACTIONARY is relating to, marked by, or favoring reaction; especially : ultraconservative in politics. Login SignUp Hello, Games&Quizzes Thesaurus WordoftheDay Features BuyingGuide M-WBooks JoinMWU MyWordsMyWords ViewRecents Account LogOut reactionary adjective SaveWord re·​ac·​tion·​ary |\rē-ˈak-shə-ˌner-ē \ Definitionofreactionary :relatingto,markedby,orfavoringreaction especially :ultraconservativeinpolitics OtherWordsfromreactionary Synonyms&Antonyms ExampleSentences LearnMoreAboutreactionary OtherWordsfromreactionary reactionary noun reactionaryism \ rē-​ˈak-​shə-​ˌner-​ē-​ˌi-​zəm \ noun Synonyms&Antonymsforreactionary Synonyms archconservative,brassbound,button-down(orbuttoned-down),conservative,die-hard,hidebound,mossbacked,old-fashioned,old-line,old-school,orthodox,paleoconservative,standpat,traditional,traditionalistic,ultraconservative,unprogressive Antonyms broad-minded,large-minded,liberal,nonconservative,nonconventional,nonorthodox,nontraditional,open-minded,progressive,unconventional,unorthodox VisittheThesaurusforMore  ExamplesofreactionaryinaSentence reactionaryguardiansofproperEnglishusageinvariablyregardeverynewcoinagethatcomesalongasanonword RecentExamplesontheWeb EnforcementofTitleIXistheresponsibilityoftheOfficeofCivilrights,butasmanyadvocatesandexpertshaveargued,investigationsarealmostalwaysreactionary,rarelypreventative. — LindsaySchnell,USATODAY,23June2022 SinceFloyd’sdeath,therewasaveryquickjumptodosomething,whichisreactionary,saysKamoraHerrington,founderofKamora’sCulturalCenterinHartford. — DeidreMontague,HartfordCourant,28May2022 Giventheincreasingcorrelationbetweengenderandideology,conservativeorevenreactionaryliteraturemightendupbeingmoreappealingtomalereaders. — SamuelGoldman,TheWeek,23May2022 Rhymeforthelight-versewritersoftheperiodwasnotareactionaryforce,nostalgicallyevokingoldorders,butademocratizingone,aunifyingpracticethatwouldberecognizablymodernandstillspeakinanaccessiblevoice. — AdamGopnik,TheNewYorker,23May2022 Chinahasatendencytopursueapathofbigplans,grandschemes,andreactionarypolicies,withoutthinkingthattheremaybeabetterway. — RussellFlannery,Forbes,25Apr.2022 Somecompaniesaretakingsmallstepstoeasetheburdenontheiremployeeslivinginstateswiththesemisogynist,reactionarylaws. — JillFilipovic,CNN,12Apr.2022 Nottoday,whenrepealingReedyCreekispresentedopenlybyitsadvocatesasretaliationagainstDisneyfordaringtospeakoutagainstFloridaRepublicans’reactionarypolicies. — MichaelHiltzikbusinessColumnist,LosAngelesTimes,4Apr.2022 Ballardisoneoftheleastreactionarygeneralmanagersoutthere. — NateAtkins,TheIndianapolisStar,1Apr.2022 SeeMore Theseexamplesentencesareselectedautomaticallyfromvariousonlinenewssourcestoreflectcurrentusageoftheword'reactionary.'ViewsexpressedintheexamplesdonotrepresenttheopinionofMerriam-Websteroritseditors.Sendusfeedback. FirstKnownUseofreactionary 1815,inthemeaningdefinedabove LearnMoreAboutreactionary Sharereactionary PosttheDefinitionofreactionarytoFacebook SharetheDefinitionofreactionaryonTwitter TimeTravelerforreactionary Thefirstknownuseofreactionarywas in1815 Seemorewordsfromthesameyear DictionaryEntriesNearreactionary reactionarist reactionary reactionengine SeeMoreNearbyEntries  Statisticsforreactionary LastUpdated 2Jul2022 Look-upPopularity CitethisEntry “Reactionary.”Merriam-Webster.comDictionary,Merriam-Webster,https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reactionary.Accessed15Jul.2022. Style:MLA MLA Chicago APA Merriam-Webster MorefromMerriam-Websteronreactionary Nglish:TranslationofreactionaryforSpanishSpeakers BritannicaEnglish:TranslationofreactionaryforArabicSpeakers WORDOFTHEDAY akimbo SeeDefinitionsandExamples» GetWordoftheDaydailyemail! TestYourVocabulary NameThatFood Namethesecookies! macarons macaroons Testyourknowledge-andmaybelearnsomethingalongtheway. TAKETHEQUIZ Adailychallengeforcrosswordfanatics. TAKETHEQUIZ SubscribetoAmerica'slargestdictionaryandgetthousandsmoredefinitionsandadvancedsearch—adfree! Merriam-Websterunabridged WordsatPlay 'Dunderhead'andOther‘Nicer’WaystoSayStupid Asillustratedbysomeverysmartpups 10WordsfromPlaceNames Bikini,bourbon,andbadmintonwereplacesfirst 'Pride':TheWordThatWentFromVicetoStrength DoyoutakeprideinPride? WhenWereWordsFirstUsed? Lookupanyyeartofindout AsktheEditors Literally Howtouseawordthat(literally)drivessomepe... 'AllIntensivePurposes'or'AllIntentsandPurposes'? We'reintentonclearingitup Layvs.Lie EditorEmilyBrewsterclarifiesthedifference. HotMess "Thepublicisahotmess" WordGames NameEvenMoreColors MorethanROYGBIV Takethequiz WildWordsfromtheAnimalKingdom Findoutifyouarevulpineorasinine Takethequiz TrueorFalse? Testyourknowledge-andmaybelearnsomethinga... Takethequiz SpellingBeeQuiz CanyououtdopastwinnersoftheNationalSpelli... Takethequiz