Meaning & use
nihilism
Last updated
UK/ˈnaɪɪlɪzəm/
US/ˈnaɪəˌlɪzəm/
Meanings
noununcountable
The belief that life has no meaning and that no moral values are true.
Grammar: Uncountable: he drifted into nihilism.
Patterns
- nihilism about something
The novel explores nihilism after the war.
Her nihilism made it hard to find purpose.
Some thinkers reject nihilism.
noununcountableformal
The rejection of all established authority and institutions.
Grammar: Used for political movements.
Russian nihilism targeted the old order.
Common combinations
- moral nihilism
- Moral nihilism denies right and wrong.
- embrace nihilism
- He embraced nihilism.
- existential nihilism
- Existential nihilism says life lacks meaning.
- slide into nihilism
- The characters slide into nihilism.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pessimism
- Expects the worst but does not deny meaning.
- cynicism
- Distrusts people's motives.
- fatalism
- Believes events are fixed.
- skepticism
- Doubts claims without rejecting all values.
Opposites
Word family
- nihilist noun
- a person who believes in nihilism
- nihilistic adjective
- expressing nihilism
Commonly confused: nihilism or pessimism?
nihilism vs pessimism
A pessimist expects bad outcomes but may still think life has meaning.
Practice
Which statement reflects nihilism?
Choose one answer.
Nihilism denies inherent meaning and moral truth.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “nihilism”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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