modernism
modernism Lexical Profile
modernism Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A global cultural, artistic, architectural, and literary movement of the late 19th and early-to-mid 20th centuries characterized by a deliberate break with classical and traditional forms in favor of experimentation, abstraction, and new modes of expression.
"The museum's new wing is dedicated to European modernism, featuring works by Picasso, Woolf, and Le Corbusier."
Modern character, tendencies, or values; sympathy with or adherence to contemporary ideas, practices, or styles.
"The city's rapid embrace of modernism transformed its historic skyline within a single generation."
A modern usage, expression, idiom, or characteristic trait, especially in language.
"The historical novelist carefully edited the manuscript to remove any accidental modernisms from the dialogue."
A movement within the Roman Catholic Church and Protestant theology in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that sought to reinterpret traditional religious doctrine in the light of modern scientific, historical, and philosophical developments.
"The theological seminary offered an advanced seminar on turn-of-the-century religious modernism and biblical criticism."
Word Nuance & Usage
'Modernism' should not be confused with 'modernity'; 'modernity' refers to the historical era or social condition of being modern, whereas 'modernism' refers specifically to the late-19th and 20th-century artistic, literary, and philosophical movement or a conscious commitment to modern ideas.
• Rhymes for modernism
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the early 18th century (notably by Jonathan Swift) from 'modern' (from Late Latin 'modernus', from 'modo', meaning 'just now') and the suffix '-ism'; it acquired its specific artistic and cultural sense in the early 20th century.