as in romantic
having or marked by a tendency to be guided more by ideals than by reality
an idealist attempt to make a go of a mom-and-pop hardware store on Main Street
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dreamer
one whose conduct is guided more by the image of perfection than by the real world
an idealist sees the best in everyone, regardless of how they behave
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of idealist
Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 May 2024
In each episode, Kaplan argues that although hubris, ambition, and hatred always lurk in the background, the knowledge of human imperfection and the limits of progress can liberate people to seek greater self-awareness and avoid idealist misadventures.
—Robert D. Kaplan, Foreign Affairs, 24 Oct. 2023
A. Wess Mitchell, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
John was an idealist, and that's what's appealing about him.
—Jordan Runtagh, People.com, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for idealist
Adjective
The film’s first trailer released on Monday, featuring Adam Driver as an idealist architect up against Giancarlo Esposito as a pragmatist mayor.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 May 2024
In each episode, Kaplan argues that although hubris, ambition, and hatred always lurk in the background, the knowledge of human imperfection and the limits of progress can liberate people to seek greater self-awareness and avoid idealist misadventures.
—Robert D. Kaplan, Foreign Affairs, 24 Oct. 2023
Noun
For all his legendary realism, U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger was an idealist who believed that the job of American diplomats was to eventually create a world federation.
—A. Wess Mitchell, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
John was an idealist, and that's what's appealing about him.
—Jordan Runtagh, People.com, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for idealist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idealist
Adjective
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Last season, Savchenko hit the dance floor with Brooks Nader and the two kicked off an on-again-off-again romantic relationship that ended in April with the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model claiming Savchenko had cheated.—
Alexandra Schonfeld,
People.com,
3 June 2025
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Pierre’s character steps in as Taylor’s romantic interest with a steamy makeout session.—
DeMicia Inman,
VIBE.com,
3 June 2025
Noun
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The advent of aviation in this world was something for crackpots and dreamers at the edge of society to do.—
Rob Wieland,
Forbes.com,
5 June 2025
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Others were anonymous anarchists, dreamers, poets, preachers and lunatics.—
Carolyn Stein,
Chicago Tribune,
1 June 2025
Adjective
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He’s joined by elder statesman Randall (Steve Carell), idealistic AI expert Jeff (Ramy Youssef) and the richest of them all: Ven (Cory Michael Smith), a clear Elon Musk analogue who rules over his social media empire with a cocky bravado.—
Dave Nemetz,
TVLine,
2 June 2025
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Among the interviewees is cultural commentator Naomi Klein, who explains how WikiLeaks grew out of an early, more idealistic incarnation of the internet, prior to the rise of social media, in which its primary purpose was to make information available to all, for free.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Study co-author and archaeological scientist Katerina Douka explains that this technique can be used to sort through large numbers of fragments in a way that is impractical for other methods such as DNA sequencing.—
Tom Hawking,
Popular Science,
5 June 2025
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One such model is the external control arm (ECA), which leverages real-world data (RWD) to supplement or replace control groups, especially when enrolling patients in placebo arms is impractical or ethically complex.—
Sujay Jadhav,
Forbes.com,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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Powerful Silicon Valley leaders are prioritizing their utopian vision of the future over the concerns of people in the present.—
John Kaag,
The Atlantic,
28 May 2025
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Yet the overall focus is on the utopian community orbiting around the intense figurehead.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
19 May 2025
Adjective
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Kirn characterized the foreword as a kind of ideological overreach.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 June 2025
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But in a wide-ranging, half-hour interview, Jolly said Floridians are waking up to the other trends in Florida under Republican rule: The Sunshine State is becoming less affordable, less tolerant and less accommodating to those who don’t share the governor’s religious and ideological beliefs.—
Vivienne Serret,
Miami Herald,
5 June 2025
Adjective
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Now, he’s evolved into full-time daddy mode, setting off into a quixotic journey to the club in the big city.—
Vita Dadoo,
Rolling Stone,
15 May 2025
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Editors’ Picks More U.S. political news: A damning new book about Joe Biden depicts an aging president surrounded by family and aides who enabled his quixotic resolve to run for a second term.—
Natasha Frost,
New York Times,
14 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Idealist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/idealist. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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