Dictionary

nihilist en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ˈni.ɪl.ɪst/ (General-American)
• /ˈnaɪ.(h)ɪl.ɪst/ (UK)
• /ˈnaɪ.(h)ɪl.ɪst/ (General-American)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈniː.ɪl.ɪst/ (UK)

Etymology

From Latin nihil (“nothing”) + -ist.

Meanings

1. Nihilistic; seeing no value.
   • Bauer used the same arguments as Rosa Luxemburg, though he was far from sharing her nihilist attitude to the national question. 1978 [1976], Leszek Kołakowski, translated by P[aul] S[teven] Falla, Main Currents of Marxism, volume II: The Golden Age, Oxford: Clarendon Press, translation of Główne nurty marksizmu: rozwój (in Polish), →ISBN, →OCLC, page 288:

Forms

nihilist en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈni.ɪl.ɪst/ (General-American)
• /ˈnaɪ.(h)ɪl.ɪst/ (UK)
• /ˈnaɪ.(h)ɪl.ɪst/ (General-American)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈniː.ɪl.ɪst/ (UK)

Etymology

From Latin nihil (“nothing”) + -ist.

Meanings

1. A person who accepts or champions nihilism.
   • “Promortalists recognize and seek to minimize suffering rather than embrace misanthropy and amorality,” Keneally says, noting that the writings attributed to Bartkus indicate he rejected the “sociopath[ic]” tendencies of nihilists” in a May 2025 forum post. […] According to the ISD report, the disorganized and ever-changing nature of nihilist ideologies makes it harder to understand and counter. 2025 May 21, Manisha Krishnan, “IVF Clinic Bombing Suspect Was Linked to ‘Anti-Life’ Ideology. Experts Fear Its Growing Influence”, in WIRED, archived from the original on 21 May 2025:
2. An absolute skeptic; a person who believes in the truth of nothing.

Forms

Deriveds

nihilistic · antinihilist

Translations (25)

it nichilista (person who accepts nihilism) · eo nihilisto (person who accepts nihilism) · ru нигили́стка (person who accepts nihilism) · de Nihilist (person who accepts nihilism) · ca nihilista (person who accepts nihilism) · fr nihiliste (person who accepts nihilism) · yi ניהיליסטין (person who accepts nihilism) · ro nihilist (person who accepts nihilism) · sv nihilist (person who accepts nihilism) · pl nihilistka (person who accepts nihilism) · de Nihilistin (person who accepts nihilism) · pl nihilista (person who accepts nihilism) · pt niilista (person who accepts nihilism) · ga nihilí (person who accepts nihilism) · oc nihilista (person who accepts nihilism) · gv neunheeyseyr (person who accepts nihilism) · el μηδενιστής (person who accepts nihilism) · ru нигили́ст (person who accepts nihilism) · es nihilista (person who accepts nihilism) · gl nihilista (person who accepts nihilism) · fi nihilisti (person who accepts nihilism) · he נִיהִילִיסְט (person who accepts nihilism) · yi ניהיליסט (person who accepts nihilism) · cs nihilista (person who accepts nihilism) · nl nihilist (person who accepts nihilism)