as in dove
a person who opposes war or warlike policies
a committed pacifist, Gandhi succeeded in bringing about Indian independence using only nonviolence
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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or pacifistic
as in neutral
inclined to live in peace and to avoid war
the newspaper's editorial board has clearly staked out a pacifist position on the current conflict
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of pacifist
Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 10 June 2024
Robertson, a Milwaukee philanthropist who is 108 years old, started the program in 2016 in memory of her late mother, Roberts, a pacifist and suffragette.
—Sophie Carson, Journal Sentinel, 12 Apr. 2024
Charli Carpenter, Foreign Affairs, 28 Mar. 2011
Snufkin’s instruments are particularly crucial to the pacifist game’s main conflict — destroying the Park Keeper’s tidy parks.
—Ashley Bardhan, Vulture, 8 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for pacifist 
Noun
Both parents were ardent foes of racial inequality, his mother as a pacifist, his father carrying a gun.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 10 June 2024
Robertson, a Milwaukee philanthropist who is 108 years old, started the program in 2016 in memory of her late mother, Roberts, a pacifist and suffragette.
—Sophie Carson, Journal Sentinel, 12 Apr. 2024
Adjective
Jeane Kirkpatrick, President Ronald Reagan’s foreign policy adviser and later U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, was never known for pacifist views.
—Charli Carpenter, Foreign Affairs, 28 Mar. 2011
Snufkin’s instruments are particularly crucial to the pacifist game’s main conflict — destroying the Park Keeper’s tidy parks.
—Ashley Bardhan, Vulture, 8 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for pacifist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pacifist
Noun
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With the North Stars leading 47-9, Posada dove on the floor against three Hawks and managed to get a jump ball.—
Matt Le Cren,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Jan. 2025
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Fallon also makes a saucy joke about the bulge in his workout shorts ,as he's seen pulling out a dove that flies away.—
Kimberlee Speakman,
People.com,
9 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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While the gaze in Freud’s painting is fairly neutral, the gaze in Paul’s painting is not.—
Karl Ove Knausgaard,
The New Yorker,
27 Jan. 2025
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Most countries were of a mind to try to stay neutral between the two powers and maintain good relations with both Washington and Beijing.—
Quico Toro,
The Atlantic,
27 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Their decision to attend underscores a commitment to the traditions of American democracy, including the peaceful transfer of power.—
Kristen Waggoner,
Newsweek,
21 Jan. 2025
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Trump also commuted the sentences of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers members who were charged with plotting to forcibly halt the peaceful transfer of power in 2020 to time served.—
Sarah Fortinsky,
The Hill,
21 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Military comedies have a long and relatively peaceable history on screens small and large — Fred Astaire, Bob Hope, Abbott and Costello, Martin and Lewis and Bill Murray all made them.—
Robert Lloyd,
Boston Herald,
6 Jan. 2025
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In the past, feeding them was a way to keep the relations peaceable.—
Omkar Khandekar,
NPR,
5 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Xi must know that old societies tend to be pacific and that China is getting old fast.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
23 Dec. 2024
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Choose between two rich colors: pacific blue or yarrow gold.—
Sydney Gore,
Architectural Digest,
10 Sep. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near pacifist
Cite this Entry
“Pacifist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pacifist. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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