Separatist (Noun)
Meaning
An advocate of secession or separation from a larger group (such as an established church or a national union).
Classification
Nouns denoting people.
Examples
- The separatist leader rallied support among his people for a new, independent nation free from colonial rule.
- A lifelong separatist, she argued that the northern province would be better off as a self-governing state.
- Some politicians were labeled separatists by their opponents for proposing reforms that would weaken the national government.
- He saw the demands of the regional separatists as a legitimate cry for autonomy in a state that often ignored local concerns.
- Throughout the colonial era, many Native American separatists had pressed for treaties recognizing their rights to traditional lands and self-determination.