populist
5 synonyms and 3 antonyms for populist, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Adjective — Appealing to ordinary people by presenting politics as a struggle between the honest public and a corrupt or out-of-touch elite.
Synonyms
Less common
Still standard English, but they carry more weight.
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
Synonyms by Meaning
1. adjective
Appealing to ordinary people by presenting politics as a struggle between the honest public and a corrupt or out-of-touch elite.
“He ran a populist campaign against the banks and the media.”
Opposites
2. adjective
Designed to be liked by a wide general audience rather than by critics or experts.
“It was a populist programme of blockbusters and singalongs.”
Opposites
How to use populist
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Usually mildly critical in journalism, though people described this way often embrace the label. It describes a style of politics, not a position on the left-right spectrum.
Etymology
From Latin populus, "the people", via the political movements of the late 19th century that took the name.
Full origin of populist →