noun

idealist

noun

Someone who holds onto high principles or a vision of how things ought to be, sometimes at the expense of practicality.

"The young idealist believed the whole company could be run without layoffs."

"Critics called her an idealist, but her reforms actually worked."

How to Use Idealist

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishA person driven by principles and how things "should" be, rather than by what is practical or realistic.

Common mistake

Not automatically an insult — it can mean principled and hopeful, or naively unrealistic, depending on context.

Common pairings

a hopeless idealist young idealist idealist at heart

idealists plural

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Can you complete this real example?

The young _____ believed the whole company could be run without layoffs.

From French idéaliste, ultimately from Latin idea, "idea" — someone chasing the ideal rather than the real.

realist vocalist finalist loyalist medalist socialist herbalist mentalist capitalist journalist specialist naturalist