Purist (Noun)
Meaning
Someone who insists on great precision and correctness (especially in the use of words).
Classification
Nouns denoting people.
Examples
- The linguist was a purist who insisted that the word "decimate" should only be used to describe the killing of one in ten people, not to describe widespread destruction.
- As a purist, the editor refused to allow the use of the phrase "literally" in a figurative sense in the magazine's articles.
- The food critic was a purist who believed that a true martini should only be made with gin and dry vermouth, and that any other ingredients were an abomination.
- The historian was a purist who insisted that the term "Renaissance" should only be used to describe the cultural and artistic movement in Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries.
- The musician was a purist who believed that jazz should only be played on acoustic instruments, and that the use of electronic instruments was a corruption of the genre.