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pacifism

[ pas-uh-fiz-uhm ]
/ ˈpæs əˌfɪz əm /
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See synonyms for pacifism on Thesaurus.com
noun
opposition to war or violence of any kind.
refusal to engage in military activity because of one's principles or beliefs.
the principle or policy that all differences among nations should be adjusted without recourse to war.
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Also pa·cif·i·cism [puh-sif-uh-siz-uhm]. /pəˈsɪf əˌsɪz əm/.

Origin of pacifism

1905–10; <pacifisme.See pacific, -ism

OTHER WORDS FROM pacifism

an·ti·pac·i·fism, nounpro·pac·i·fism, noun

Words nearby pacifism

Pacific salmon, Pacific Standard Time, Pacific time, Pacific tree frog, pacifier, pacifism, pacifist, pacifistic, pacify, pacing, Pacinian corpuscle
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to pacifism

pacification, accord, friendship, love, reconciliation, truce, unity, passiveness, passivity, peaceableness, amity, armistice, cessation, conciliation, concord, neutrality, order, treaty, unanimity, union

How to use pacifism in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pacifism

pacifism
/ (ˈpæsɪˌfɪzəm) /
noun
the belief that violence of any kind is unjustifiable and that one should not participate in war
the belief that international disputes can be settled by arbitration rather than war
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for pacifism

pacifism

The view that war is morally unacceptable and never justified (see conscientious objector). The term is sometimes applied to the belief that international disputes should be settled peacefully.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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