Meanings
plural environmentalisms
- countableuncountablehuman sciencesA theory that views environment, rather than heredity or culture, as the important factor in the development of an individual or group.
The first is that the present work in no sense represents a relapse toward the old environmentalism which believed it could find the causes of culture in environment.
1939, Alfred L. Kroeber, “Objectives”, in Cultural and Natural Areas of Native North America, published 1963, page 1 - countableuncountablegovernmentA political and social ideology that seeks to prevent the environment from degradation by human activity.
The need for environmentalisms engaged with the commons rather than relegated to the individual consumer or tied to the middle-class principles of private property.
2018, Nicole Seymour, Bad Environmentalism, page 196
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe philosophical doctrine that environment is more important than heredity in determining intellectual growth
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
- Proto-Italic*en
- Old Latinen
- Latinin
- Old Frenchen
- Latinvibrāre?
- Vulgar Latin*virāre
- Old Frenchvirer
- Old Frenchviron
- Old Frenchenviron
- Middle Frenchenviron
- Middle Frenchenvironner
- Middle Frenchenvironnement
- Englishenvironment
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
- Englishenvironmental
- Englishenvironmentalism
From environmental + -ism.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 環境保護主義 /环境保护主义
- 環境保護主義 /环境保护主义 (huánjìng bǎohù zhǔyì)ideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Finnish environmentalismi
- environmentalismiideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
French écologisme, environnementalisme
- écologismeideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
- environnementalismeideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
German Ökologismus
- Ökologismusideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Hungarian környezetvédelem
- környezetvédelemideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Italian ambientalismo, ecologismo
- ambientalismoideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
- ecologismoideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Japanese 環境主義
- 環境主義ideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Portuguese ambientalismo, ecologismo
- ambientalismoideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
- ecologismoideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Romanian ecologism
- ecologismideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Russian энвайронментали́зм, экологи́зм
- энвайронментали́зм (envajronmentalízm)ideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
- экологи́зм (ekologízm)ideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Spanish ecologismo, ambientalismo
- ecologismoideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
- ambientalismoideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Turkish çevrecilik
- çevrecilikideology seeking to prevent the degradation of environment
Cite this entry
environmentalism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/environmentalism
“environmentalism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/environmentalism. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “environmentalism,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/environmentalism.
Source: environmentalism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.