utopianism

U1T1O1P3I1A1N1I1S1M3

noun

The belief in a system for an ideal society, usually regarded as unrealistic.

OriginEnglish utopian ← New Latin Ūtopia ← Ancient Greek τόπος (tópos) →
UncommonScrabble 14
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Meanings

utopianism1

nounutopianism (countable and uncountable, plural utopianisms)

plural utopianisms · alternative Utopianism

  1. countableuncountableThe belief in a system for an ideal society, usually regarded as unrealistic.

    In this solid account of the calamitous effect of dry utopianism on New York City, Lerner explains how the Prohibition amendment was passed and why its execution failed.

    2007 March 11, Pete Hamill, “Raging Thirst”, in New York Times
    1 more example

    Barack Obama in 2008 was probably the last western leader to capture this sentiment, with his slogan “Hope and change”. […] That shared utopianism allowed tech leaders to bond with political leaders.

    2025 October 11, Simon Kuper, “A utopian future is still, just about, possible”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 20

Utopianism2

nounUtopianism (countable and uncountable, plural Utopianisms)

plural Utopianisms

  1. countableuncountableAlternative letter-case form of utopianism.

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekοὐ (ou)
  2. Ancient Greekτόπος (tópos)
  3. New LatinŪtopia
  4. Englishutopia
  5. Englishutopian
  6. Englishutopianism

From utopian + -ism.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Czech utopismus
  • utopismusthe belief in a system for an ideal society
German Utopismus
  • Utopismusthe belief in a system for an ideal society
Indonesian utopianisme
  • utopianismethe belief in a system for an ideal society
Irish útóipeachas
  • útóipeachasthe belief in a system for an ideal society
Romanian utopism
  • utopismthe belief in a system for an ideal society
Cite this entry
APA

utopianism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/utopianism

MLA

“utopianism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/utopianism. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “utopianism,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/utopianism.

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