neo-reactionary
UK/ˌniːəʊɹɪˈakʃn̩(ə)ɹi/
neo-reactionary adjective: reacting against the (especially liberal) values of the modern world; now typically seen as characterised by opposition to egalitarianism, support for strong centralised government, and espousal of conservative economic policies.
Adjective
neo-reactionary (comparative more neo-reactionary, superlative most neo-reactionary)
- Reacting against the (especially liberal) values of the modern world; now typically seen as characterised by opposition to egalitarianism, support for strong centralised government, and espousal of conservative economic policies.
- Following the outbreak of a revolution in Bolivia in December, 1943, the CTAL labeled the new Bolivian regime a "neo-reactionary victory" and pointed out that "their aim is undemocratic […]".1945, Labor Fact Book, volume 7, page 197
- Austria narrowly avoided installing a neo-reactionary president in last year’s two elections.2017 April, Andrew Sullivan, “The Reactionary Temptation”, in New York Magazine
Noun
neo-reactionary (plural neo-reactionaries)
- Someone who holds such views.
- With the accession to power of the neo-reactionaries, Nixon and then Reagan, the timber companies and the "immediate gratification" right took complete charge.1991, Z Magazine, volume 4, page 16
- Neoreactionaries believe that while technology and capitalism have advanced humanity over the past couple centuries, democracy has actually done more harm than good. They propose a return to old-fashioned gender roles, social order and monarchy.2013 November 23, Klint Finley, “Geeks for Monarchy: The Rise of the Neoreactionaries”, in TechCrunch, archived from the original on 02 Dec 2013
Forms of neo-reactionary
| Adjective | |
|---|---|
| comparative | more neo-reactionary |
| superlative | most neo-reactionary |
| alternative form | neoreactionary |
| alternative form | NRx |
| Noun | |
| plural | neo-reactionaries |
Origin of neo-reactionary
From neo- + reactionary, in the contemporary meaning popularized in a 2010 blog post.
Questions about neo-reactionary
- What does neo-reactionary mean?
- Neo-reactionary means reacting against the (especially liberal) values of the modern world; now typically seen as characterised by opposition to egalitarianism, support for strong centralised government, and espousal of conservative economic policies.
- What part of speech is neo-reactionary?
- Neo-reactionary can be an adjective or a noun.
- How do you pronounce neo-reactionary?
- Neo-reactionary is pronounced /ˌniːəʊɹɪˈakʃn̩(ə)ɹi/ (UK).
Words near neo-reactionary in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: neo-reactionary (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: neo-reactionary US.ogg.
Cite this entry: “neo-reactionary.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/neo-reactionary. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.