Meaning & use

idealistic

adjective·Academic

Believing in or pursuing high, often unrealistic, standards of perfection and moral goodness.

See it in a sentence

The idealistic young volunteer believed she could end hunger in her community within a year.

His idealistic plans for the company ignored the realities of the budget.

A note on using this word

Idealistic can be admiring or mildly critical, depending on whether the speaker values the ideals or doubts their practicality.

Words with a similar meaning

utopianstarry-eyedvisionary

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

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