Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An advocate of immorality.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun One who opposes or disregards the principles of morality.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An advocate of immorality

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Just occasionally a man like Shaw who was called an immoralist 50 times worse than me back in the 90ties, lives on long enough so that the world grows up to him.

    A Life in Letters F. SCOTT FITZGERALD 1994

  • Just occasionally a man like Shaw who was called an immoralist 50 times worse than me back in the 90ties, lives on long enough so that the world grows up to him.

    A Life in Letters F. SCOTT FITZGERALD 1994

  • Nor is the modern moralist, or as he prefers to style himself, "immoralist," Nietzsche, [Footnote: A sketch of Nietzsche's doctrine is given later, see chapter xxix.] guilty of less gross a blunder.

    A Handbook of Ethical Theory George Stuart Fullerton

  • Has not Nietzsche himself been counted, in his own playful phrase, an "immoralist"?

    Impressions and Comments Havelock Ellis 1899

  • Each chapter focuses on one of four archetypes in life or art whom Fraser believes have shaped the financial markets and their image — “the aristocrat,” “the confidence man,” “the hero” and “the immoralist.”

    2008 October 27 « One-Minute Book Reviews 2008

  • Each chapter focuses on one of four archetypes in life or art whom Fraser believes have shaped the financial markets and their image — “the aristocrat,” “the confidence man,” “the hero” and “the immoralist.”

    2008 October « One-Minute Book Reviews 2008

  • Mr Mania you are a subtle moralist or perhaps a subtle immoralist, I haven't quite decided in the heyday of blogging (2006) this post would have resulted in a high-quality debate lasting 5 days at least

    When You Walk Through A Storm...... Newmania 2007

  • Hayek repeatedly quoted Keynes's words, "In the long run we are all dead," and called him an immoralist because of that.

    For a Moral Stimulus 2009

  • Jean Hampton offers a feminist analysis of what goes on with the sexist immoralist who targets a person in virtue of her group membership (1999).

    Feminist Moral Psychology Superson, Anita 2009

  • One day, God willing, all those who have chosen the immoralist gay lifestyle will be deported out of America and back to Homoslavia.

    Archive 2007-09-01 2007

Comments

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  • Probably best known from Gide's 1902 novel, but Nietzsche was using it earlier: 'Being an immoralist one has to take steps against corrupting innocents - I mean, asses and old maids of both sexes whom life offers nothing but their innocence.'

    October 27, 2007

  • This doesn't mean what you (would) think. This is opposition or indifference to conventional morality. It isn't such a bad thing.

    Edit: would

    October 27, 2007

  • That, of course, depends on your definition of "bad." ;-)

    October 28, 2007

  • Doesn't mean what who thinks? I was quoting Nietzsche's usage (in Kaufmann's translation from the German, of course).

    October 28, 2007

  • That was the global "you". In general, this word doesn't mean what people who hadn't seen it before would think it would mean. I guess I should have had a "would" in there.

    October 28, 2007