doctrinaire

UK/ˌdɒk.tɹɪˈnɛə̯/US/ˌdɑk.tɹɪˈnɛɹ/

doctrinaire noun: a person who stubbornly holds to a philosophy or opinion regardless of its feasibility.

Noun

doctrinaire (plural doctrinaires)

A person who stubbornly holds to a philosophy or opinion regardless of its feasibility.
- And he is not above feeling grave and well-contained satisfaction wherever the socialist doctrinaire has been contradicted by men attempting to practise coöperation in the midst of the competitive system, as in Belgium.1905 April, Jack London, “A Review”, in War of the Classes, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 212
- Or, shall we play the doctrinaire, and hint that at thirty-four the tides of life are calmer and cognizant of many sources instead of but one—as at four-and-twenty?1909 April, O. Henry [pseudonym; William Sydney Porter], “The Renaissance at Charleroi”, in Roads of Destiny, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, →OCLC, page 274
(historical) In France, in 1815–30, a faction that advocated a constitution modeled on that of Britain.

doctrinaire (comparative more doctrinaire, superlative most doctrinaire)

Stubbornly holding on to an idea without concern for practicalities or reality.
- Mr. Chapman began to talk in a loud voice about the situation in the House of Commons. He guffawed at his adversaries. The word doctrinaire—word full of terror to the British mind—reappeared from time to time between his explosions.[1891, Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, London; New York, N.Y.: Ward Lock & Co., →OCLC
- We have been long accustomed to consider growth as applied almost exclusively to size in its various aspects. But Nature, who has no doctrinaire ideas, may equally apply it to concentration.1911, Bram Stoker, The Lair of the White Worm, London: William Rider and Son, […], →OCLC

கொள்கை முரண்டு

inflexible, dogmatic, rigid: താത്ത്വികം, കേവലസിദ്ധാന്തപരമായ, ആദർശപ്രധാനം, പ്രത്യയശാസ്ത്രശാഠ്യമുള്ള, ആധികാരികതത്വംമായ, സെെദ്ധാന്തിക

The course set by Cameron and Osborne is not just doctrinaire.2009 October 8, Martin Kettle, “Doctrinaire and dangerous, Cameron's speech could unseal the deal”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
But I didn’t want to be too doctrinaire.2023 June 6, Devin Gordon, “Why Is Everyone Watching TV With the Subtitles On?”, in The Atlantic, retrieved 09 Jun 2023:

Borrowed from French doctrinaire, from doctrine + -aire.

What does doctrinaire mean?: Doctrinaire means a person who stubbornly holds to a philosophy or opinion regardless of its feasibility.
What is doctrinaire in Tamil?: Doctrinaire in Tamil is கொள்கை முரண்டு. See Doctrinaire meaning in Tamil.
How do you use doctrinaire in a sentence?: The course set by Cameron and Osborne is not just doctrinaire.
What part of speech is doctrinaire?: Doctrinaire can be a noun or an adjective.
How do you pronounce doctrinaire?: Doctrinaire is pronounced /ˌdɒk.tɹɪˈnɛə̯/ (UK).
What is the plural of doctrinaire?: The plural of doctrinaire is doctrinaires.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-doctrinaire.wav.

Cite this entry: “doctrinaire.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/doctrinaire. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.