nihilism

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This gained him the dislike of the high officers and of the tchinovnik The absurd and dangerous doctrine of nihilism, that is, the destruction of everything that constitutes society, penetrated into Russia by way of Germany.

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Definitions (15)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (6)

  1. noun Philosophy An extreme form of skepticism that denies all existence.
  2. noun Philosophy A doctrine holding that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated.
  3. noun Rejection of all distinctions in moral or religious value and a willingness to repudiate all previous theories of morality or religious belief.

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Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

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Examples (50)

  • In a slender book on the subject of nihilism, the priest-monk Fr. Seraphim Rose showed how radically materialist ideologies such as communism and fascism will always fail as long as a single believer remains. —  Spero News
  • Ironically, the best antidote to this kind of nihilism is contained in the comments to Platt's post: —  The Writing On The Wal
  • Continuing violations of human rights by the authorities; infringement on private property rights; the judiciary system's fall into decay and finally dragging Georgia into the military provocation staged and initiated by Russia in August 2008 has triggered hopelessness and nihilism, as well as mistrust in the large part of the population. —  Civil.Ge Daily News
  • First there was Bobo Brooks accusing Jindal of nihilism, then Tim Pawlenty urging Republicans to move beyond Reagan, followed by RNC Chair Michael Steele calling Rush's schtick worrying about the optics of Rush as the bloated, sweaty face of the GOP. —  Firedoglake
  • This would be based upon an affirmative nihilism, the mobilization of the creative second technology, the loosening of the masses, and the ` politicization of art '. —  CiteULike: Everyone's library
 

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Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Latin nihil, nothing; see ne in Indo-European roots + -ism.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. = French nihilisme = Spanish nihilismo; as L. nihil, nothing, + -ism.
 

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/ˈnaɪhɪlɪzm/
by American Heritage

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