na·tion·al·ist
ˈna-sh(ə-)nə-list 
plural nationalists
1
: an advocate of or believer in nationalism
2
: a member of a political party or group advocating national independence or strong national government
compare black nationalist, white nationalist
1
: of, relating to, or advocating nationalism
2
: of, relating to, or being a political group advocating or associated with nationalism
Synonyms
Examples of nationalist in a Sentence
Noun
a staunch nationalist who favored any policy that would give the country more power in the international arena
Adjective
The country's Nationalist Party won the election.
most of the articles on the website are nationalist propaganda and not objective by any means
Recent Examples on the Web
Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 June 2024
The Tricky Politics of Swedish Folk Music In the early twentieth century, folk music in Sweden was connected with right-wing nationalists, leaving a complicated inheritance for today’s music fans.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2024
On March 13, 1973, in the midst of the semester, members of the Jewish Defense League, a far-right, anti-Arab, Jewish nationalist group founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane,disrupted Blatt’s class.
—Marjorie N. Feld, The Conversation, 20 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for nationalist 
Noun
The German capital is at the cutting edge of social and artistic experimentation — with a giddy, hedonistic nightlife — but is also a political tinderbox as sky-high inflation and rampant poverty meet a rising movement of far-right nationalists.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 June 2024
The Tricky Politics of Swedish Folk Music In the early twentieth century, folk music in Sweden was connected with right-wing nationalists, leaving a complicated inheritance for today’s music fans.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
Adjective
Our policy prescriptions couldn’t be further apart, but is the us-versus-them mentality serving anyone other than Donald Trump and those wealthy supporters who are prospering off his Christian nationalist hypocrisy?
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2024
On March 13, 1973, in the midst of the semester, members of the Jewish Defense League, a far-right, anti-Arab, Jewish nationalist group founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane,disrupted Blatt’s class.
—Marjorie N. Feld, The Conversation, 20 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for nationalist
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nationalist.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near nationalist
Cite this Entry
“Nationalist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nationalist. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.
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