Meaning & use
philistinism
Last updated
A lack of appreciation for art, culture, or intellectual values, especially when combined with a narrow, materialistic outlook.
See it in a sentence
Critics accused the new museum director of philistinism after he proposed replacing the sculpture garden with a parking lot.
The novel satirizes the philistinism of a society obsessed with wealth but indifferent to literature.
A note on using this word
The word derives from "Philistine," the ancient people the Israelites battled, later used metaphorically in 19th-century English to mean someone hostile to art and ideas.
Words with a similar meaning
anti-intellectualismcrassness
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
sophisticationrefinement
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