ordoliberalism

or·do·lib·er·al·ism
O1R1D2O1L1I1B3E1R1A1L1I1S1M3
UK/ˌɔːdəʊˈlɪbɹəlɪz(ə)m/UK/-bəɹəl/US/ˌɔɹdoʊˈlɪbəɹəlɪzəm/US/-də-/

noun

A political philosophy that emphasizes the desirability of the government establishing rules to maximize the potential of the free market to produce results.

Scrabble 19

Meanings

nounordoliberalism (uncountable)
  1. uncountableeconomicsA political philosophy that emphasizes the desirability of the government establishing rules to maximize the potential of the free market to produce results.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁lewdʰ-“to grow; people”
  2. Latinlīber“free, independent, unchecked, unrestricted”
  3. Frenchlibéralisme
  4. Proto-Indo-European*h₂er-“to fit, put together; to fix”
  5. Latinōrdō“methodical arrangement, order, or series”
  6. GermanOrdoliberalismus
  7. Englishordoliberalism

Borrowed from German Ordoliberalismus (coined in 1950 by the German economist Hero Moeller (1892–1974)), from ORDO (the name of a journal, the full title of which is ORDO — Jahrbuch für die Ordnung von Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft (ORDO – Yearbook of Economic and Social Order) + Liberalismus (“liberalism”). ORDO is derived from Latin ōrdō (“methodical arrangement, order, or series”), probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- (“to fit, put together; to fix”); while Liberalismus is from French libéralisme (ultimately from Latin līber (“free, independent, unchecked, unrestricted”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁lewdʰ- (“to grow; people”)) + -ismus (“suffix forming the names of schools of thought, systems, or theories”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Czech ordoliberalismus
  • ordoliberalismuspolitical philosophy
Danish ordoliberalisme
  • ordoliberalismepolitical philosophy
Dutch ordoliberalisme
  • ordoliberalismepolitical philosophy
Estonian ordoliberalism
  • ordoliberalismpolitical philosophy
Finnish ordoliberalismi
  • ordoliberalismipolitical philosophy
French ordolibéralisme
  • ordolibéralismepolitical philosophy
German Ordoliberalismus
  • Ordoliberalismuspolitical philosophy
Italian ordoliberalismo
  • ordoliberalismopolitical philosophy
Japanese オルド自由主義
  • オルド自由主義 (orudojiyūshugi)political philosophy
Korean 질서자유주의
  • 질서자유주의 (jilseojayujuui)political philosophy
Norwegian Bokmål ordoliberalisme
  • ordoliberalismepolitical philosophy
Polish ordoliberalizm
  • ordoliberalizmpolitical philosophy
Portuguese ordoliberalismo
  • ordoliberalismopolitical philosophy
Russian западногерманский неолиберализм
  • западногерманский неолиберализм (zapadnogermanskij neoliberalizm)political philosophy
Slovak ordoliberalizmus
  • ordoliberalizmuspolitical philosophy
Spanish ordoliberalismo
  • ordoliberalismopolitical philosophy
Swedish ordoliberalism
  • ordoliberalismpolitical philosophy
Turkish ordoliberalizm
  • ordoliberalizmpolitical philosophy
Ukrainian ордолібералі́зм
  • ордолібералі́зм (ordoliberalízm)political philosophy
Cite this entry
APA

ordoliberalism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ordoliberalism

MLA

“ordoliberalism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ordoliberalism. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ordoliberalism,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ordoliberalism.

Source: ordoliberalism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.