Meaning & use

neutralist

noun·Academic

Last updated

A person or nation that advocates or practices political neutrality, especially by refusing to align with either side in a conflict or rivalry between major powers.

See it in a sentence

During the Cold War, several newly independent nations adopted a neutralist foreign policy.

The neutralist senator argued against joining either military alliance.

A note on using this word

Neutralist became a common political term during the Cold War to describe countries in the Non-Aligned Movement that avoided siding with either the US or the USSR.

Words with a similar meaning

nonaligned

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

Words with an opposite meaning

interventionistpartisan

Another way to use it

2. adjective

Advocating or characterized by political neutrality.

India pursued a broadly neutralist stance throughout much of the Cold War.

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