academicism
noun
ac·a·dem·i·cism
ˌa-kə-ˈde-mə-ˌsi-zəm 
variants
or less commonly academism
1
: the doctrines of Plato's Academy
specifically
: the skeptical doctrines of the later Academy holding that nothing can be known compare pyrrhonism
2
: a formal academic quality (as in art or music)
3
: purely speculative thoughts and attitudes
Examples of academicism in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Also on view are five smaller paintings from the 1880s and ’90s that touch on Klimt’s development from the romanticized academicism evident in the public murals to his late landscapes.
—
Roberta Smith, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
When certain filmmakers presume to contrive stories of rural people of faith, there’s always the risk that a certain academicism, and some worse things, will dominate their explorations.
—Glenn Kenny, BostonGlobe.com, 16 May 2023
But for researchers like Garcia-Romeu, measuring and quantifying the relationship between mystical states and mental health improvement goes beyond mere academicism.
—Natan Ponieman, Forbes, 1 Oct. 2021
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Roberta Smith, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
When certain filmmakers presume to contrive stories of rural people of faith, there’s always the risk that a certain academicism, and some worse things, will dominate their explorations.
—Glenn Kenny, BostonGlobe.com, 16 May 2023
But for researchers like Garcia-Romeu, measuring and quantifying the relationship between mystical states and mental health improvement goes beyond mere academicism.
—Natan Ponieman, Forbes, 1 Oct. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Academicism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/academicism. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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