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as in narrow
unwilling to grant other people social rights or to accept other viewpoints some of the more illiberal residents were opposed to having a hospice for AIDS patients in the neighborhood

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of illiberal And so in the decade after Netanyahu’s return to power, an increasingly right-wing majority in the Knesset began advancing a slew of illiberal laws aimed at eroding civil liberties and human rights and entrenching the occupation. Dahlia Scheindlin, Foreign Affairs, 27 Sep. 2024 An old point, but one that cannot be stressed enough: If liberal parties fail to keep law and order, people will turn to illiberal parties to do the job. Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 18 Sep. 2024 Thinking in a binary way about a liberal EU besieged by an illiberal far right externalizes the problem of the far right, obscuring a clearer understanding of how the EU might evolve in the future. Hans Kundnani, Foreign Affairs, 10 Sep. 2024 But the group polled included government officials, and even illiberal democracies now feel pressure to respond to citizens’ views. Lynn Kuok, Foreign Affairs, 3 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for illiberal 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illiberal
Adjective
  • There are literally thousands of other Americans worldwide who have dedicated their lives in similar ways to causes that are more consequential than parochial nationalism.
    Saleem H. Ali, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
  • Slipknot have since gone multi-platinum, founded their own music festival, and stretched far beyond their parochial metal scene into persistent cultural relevance.
    Emma Madden, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • True lilies produce one stem and have narrow, strappy leaves.
    Lauren David, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Nov. 2024
  • In Legislative District 16 in central Arizona, Democrats were emboldened by the narrow 3.5% edge Republicans had after legislative redistricting.
    Mary Jo Pitzl, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Trump was heard bragging in vulgar terms about women.
    Alena Botros, Fortune, 4 Nov. 2024
  • Married to Stanley, a man of carnal appetites and vulgar manners, Stella has embraced the crude pleasures of realism, while her freeloading sister still clings to tattered aristocratic illusions.
    Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Researchers trained rats to jog on a treadmill To scientifically measure that observation, researchers captured two dozen vampire bats from Belize and trained them to use a small treadmill typically used to measure the metabolic rates of rats.
    Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 7 Nov. 2024
  • His priorities include veterans’ rights, advocating for small businesses, protecting the border and education, according to his campaign website. AD-64 includes a portion of Los Angeles County and La Habra in Orange County.
    Hanna Kang, Orange County Register, 7 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Vance has pushed the baseless, racist claim that Haitian immigrants are eating American pets, as well as bigoted, undemocratic ideas about people without children.
    Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2024
  • But as civility gets ground down to a nub by increasingly racist and bigoted behavior, from Trump down, there have to be consequences for actions.
    Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 29 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • Now, the crass buddy comedy is ready to make Disney+ its home this fall — on November 12, to be exact.
    Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2024
  • At worst, this is a case of playing crass politics with the country’s energy security.
    David Blackmon, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • Despite the emotional celebration, the Raptors’ Global Ambassador still had some petty energy to put into the air.
    Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 4 Nov. 2024
  • There is a long tradition of petty smuggling in the region.
    Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • The city held the top spot on a real-time list of the world’s most polluted cities on Sunday after recording its highest-ever pollution reading of 1900 near the Pakistan-India border on Saturday, based on data released by the provincial government and Swiss group IQAir.
    Reuters, NBC News, 4 Nov. 2024
  • Among others, on July 27, 2018, the DRC High Military Court upheld the conviction of 11 men, including a provincial deputy, found guilty in December 2017 of crimes against humanity for the rape of dozens of young children and girls and for murders in the village of Kavumu, 25 km from Bukavu.
    Dr. Ewelina U. Ochab, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near illiberal

Cite this Entry

“Illiberal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illiberal. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

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