partisan 1 of 2

partisan

2 of 2

noun

variants also partizan
1
2
3
as in sectarian
one who stubbornly or intolerantly adheres to his or her own opinions and prejudices she's too much of a political partisan to ever concede that the other side might have a valid point

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word partisan different from other nouns like it?

Some common synonyms of partisan are adherent, disciple, and follower. While all these words mean "one who gives full loyalty and support to another," partisan suggests a zealous often prejudiced attachment.

partisans of the President

When could adherent be used to replace partisan?

The synonyms adherent and partisan are sometimes interchangeable, but adherent suggests a close and persistent attachment.

adherents to Marxism

When might disciple be a better fit than partisan?

While the synonyms disciple and partisan are close in meaning, disciple implies a devoted allegiance to the teachings of one chosen as a master.

disciples of Gandhi

When can follower be used instead of partisan?

Although the words follower and partisan have much in common, follower may apply to people who attach themselves either to the person or beliefs of another.

an evangelist and his followers

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of partisan
Adjective
Between the lines: The overall numbers show low approval for Trump and DOGE, but there's a partisan split. Erica Pandey, Axios, 6 Mar. 2025 The Supreme Court found that Congress could impose for-cause removal protections for multi-member commissions of experts that are balanced along partisan lines and do not exercise any executive power. Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 6 Mar. 2025
Noun
His partisans and his voters, in particular, say he's got the right amount of focus on matters like ending diversity, equity and inclusion programs and deporting those who are in the country illegally. Anthony Salvanto, CBS News, 9 Feb. 2025 Podcasters, partisans, or anyone, really, can tell outrageous, incendiary lies about a candidate. Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 27 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for partisan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for partisan
Adjective
  • The new moon partial solar eclipse in Aries on March 29th (6:58 a.m. EST) is our green light to set intentions, make power moves, and start anew.
    Dossé-Via Trenou, refinery29.com, 27 Feb. 2025
  • One unsavory reality about this journey is there's no such thing as partial credit.
    Ray Zhou, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Trump has routinely demanded that his adherents, family or not, state that black is white.
    Jon Allsop, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2025
  • But many also cited or were adherents of the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory.
    Jude Joffe-Block, NPR, 30 Dec. 2024
Noun
  • A number of fans seem to believe that the shift can be attributed to his portrayal of Gotham City's caped crusader in Matt Reeves' 2022 reboot of the DC character.
    Matt Robison, Newsweek, 18 Feb. 2025
  • Later, Christian crusaders built citadels along the coast that went on to be repurposed by Muslim Ottoman rulers.
    Daniele Hamamdjian, NBC News, 17 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • People want to get rid of religious parties, people want to put sectarians behind to build an Iraq for all Iraqis.
    Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 22 May 2015
  • Both sides insist the other initiated the initial volley of gunfire that killed four agents and six sectarians.
    Joshua Alston, Variety, 12 Apr. 2023
Adjective
  • The set-up has grown increasingly hostile over time, and became an impassible roadblock when the Lerner family tried to sell the Nationals back in 2022.
    Scott Soshnick, Sportico.com, 4 Mar. 2025
  • Prince overcame the hostile environment and kept TCU afloat during the first quarter when the Horned Frogs struggled to find their footing offensively.
    Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • In the digital age, growing popularity translates to more Instagram followers — 853,000 for Shelton — and dreamy TikTok montages of him.
    Brendan Le, People.com, 8 Mar. 2025
  • On TikTok, more than 22M videos about Black women in stocks, and content creators are sharing their insight on REITs for followers.
    Jasmine Browley, Essence, 7 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Trump is a hard-line nationalist who pursues power, profit, and unilateral advantage.
    HAL BRANDS, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
  • This is part of a far-right surge sweeping Europe, where hard-line nationalists have already cultivated ties with President Donald Trump’s White House.
    Alexander Smith, NBC News, 21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Many of the photos are rarely seen, including some of distorted celebrity photos that were commissioned by major magazines.
    Matt Shaw, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025
  • After losing his wife and creative partner, Mimi Parker, to cancer, ending the band Low, Alan Sparhawk wades through distorted solo songs of grief at Elsewhere (April 2).
    Shauna Lyon, The New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Partisan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/partisan. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.

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