Standard Lemma guide

individualism

noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 N D IH0 V IH0 D UW1 AH0 L IH2 Z AH0 M Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The tendency for a person to act without reference to others, particularly in matters of style, fashion or mode of thought.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The moral stance, political philosophy, or social outlook that promotes independence and self-reliance of individual people, while opposing the interference with each person's choices by society, the state, or any other group or institution.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The doctrine that only individual things are real.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, logic, mathematics, philosophy, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

The doctrine that nothing exists but the individual self.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, philosophy, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

the quality of being individual

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • so absorbed by the movement that she lost all sense of individuality

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: individuality, individuation

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: trait

Narrower terms: singularity, uniqueness, peculiarity, specialness, specialty, speciality, distinctiveness

6

noun

Meaning 6

the doctrine that government should not interfere in commercial affairs

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: laissez faire

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: doctrine, philosophy, philosophical system, school of thought, ism

7

noun

Meaning 7

a belief in the importance of the individual and the virtue of self-reliance and personal independence

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: belief

Narrower terms: rugged individualism

History

Etymology

Borrowed from French individualisme, equivalent to individual + -ism.

Across languages

Translations

103 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: individualisme — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Chinese Mandarin: 個人主義 /个人主义 (gèrénzhǔyì) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Czech: individualismus — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Esperanto: unuopulismo — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • French: individualisme — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Galician: individualismo — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Georgian: ინდივიდუალიზმი (individualizmi) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • German: Individualismus — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Hindi: व्यष्टिवाद (vyaṣṭivād) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Indonesian: individualisme — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Italian: individualismo — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Japanese: 個人主義 (kojinshugi) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Korean: 개인주의 (gaeinjuui) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Māori: angatakitahitanga — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Polish: indywidualizm — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Portuguese: individualismo — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Romanian: individualism — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Russian: индивидуали́зм (individualízm) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Serbo-Croatian: individualizam — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Serbo-Croatian: индивидуализам — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Spanish: individualismo — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Tagalog: pagkamakasarili — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Ukrainian: індивідуалізм (indyvidualizm) — tendency for a person to act without reference to others
  • Afrikaans: individualisme — moral stance
  • Albanian: andividualizmi — moral stance
  • Arabic: فردانية (firdanya) — moral stance
  • Armenian: ինդիվիդուալիզմ (individualizm) — moral stance
  • Asturian: individualismu — moral stance
  • Basque: indibidualismo — moral stance
  • Belarusian: індывідуалізм (indyvidualizm) — moral stance
  • Bulgarian: индивидуализъм (individualizǎm) — moral stance
  • Catalan: individualisme — moral stance
  • Chinese Cantonese: 個人主義 /个人主义 (go3 jan4 zyu2 ji6) — moral stance
  • Chinese: 個人主義 /个人主义 (kò-jîn-chú-gī) — moral stance
  • Chinese Mandarin: 個人主義 /个人主义 (gèrénzhǔyì) — moral stance
  • Czech: individualismus — moral stance
  • Danish: individualisme — moral stance
  • Dutch: individualisme — moral stance
  • Esperanto: individuismo — moral stance
  • Finnish: individualismi — moral stance
  • French: individualisme — moral stance
  • Galician: individualismo — moral stance
  • Georgian: ინდივიდუალიზმი (individualizmi) — moral stance
  • German: Individualismus — moral stance
  • Greek: ατομοκρατία (atomokratía) — moral stance
  • Greek: ατομικισμός (atomikismós) — moral stance
  • Gujarati: વ્યક્તિવાદ (vyaktivād) — moral stance
  • Hebrew: אִינְדִּיבִידוּאָלִיזְם — moral stance
  • Hindi: व्यक्तिवाद (vyaktivād) — moral stance
  • Hindi: व्यष्टिवाद (vyaṣṭivād) — moral stance
  • Hungarian: individualizmus — moral stance
  • Icelandic: einstaklingshyggja — moral stance
  • Ido: individualismo — moral stance
  • Indonesian: individualisme — moral stance
  • Irish: indibhidiúlachas — moral stance
  • Italian: individualismo — moral stance
  • Japanese: 個人主義 (kojinshugi) — moral stance
  • Kannada: ಪ್ರತ್ಯೇಕತಾವಾದ (pratyēkatāvāda) — moral stance
  • Kazakh: индивидуализм (individualizm) — moral stance
  • Korean: 개인주의 (gaeinjuui) — moral stance
  • Northern Kurdish: îndîvîdualîzm — moral stance
  • Kyrgyz: индивидуализм (individualizm) — moral stance
  • Latvian: individuālisms — moral stance
  • Lithuanian: individualizmas — moral stance
  • Lombard: individualism — moral stance
  • Macedonian: индивидуализам (individualizam) — moral stance
  • Malagasy: fiolonoloanana — moral stance
  • Malay: individualisme — moral stance
  • Māori: angatakitahitanga — moral stance
  • Marathi: व्यक्तिवाद (vyaktivād) — moral stance
  • Norwegian Bokmål: individualisme — moral stance
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: individualisme — moral stance
  • Occitan: individualisme — moral stance
  • Pashto: ځانگړواله — moral stance
  • Persian: فردگرایی — moral stance
  • Polish: indywidualizm — moral stance
  • Portuguese: individualismo — moral stance
  • Romanian: individualism — moral stance
  • Russian: индивидуали́зм (individualízm) — moral stance
  • Serbo-Croatian: индивидуалѝзам — moral stance
  • Serbo-Croatian: individualìzam — moral stance
  • Slovak: individualizmus — moral stance
  • Slovene: individualizem — moral stance
  • Lower Sorbian: indiwidualizm — moral stance
  • Upper Sorbian: indiwidualizm — moral stance
  • Spanish: individualismo — moral stance
  • Swahili: ubinafsi — moral stance
  • Swedish: individualism — moral stance
  • Tagalog: pagkamakasarili — moral stance
  • Tagalog: indibidwalismo — moral stance
  • Tamil: தனிமனிதத்துவம் (taṉimaṉitattuvam) — moral stance
  • Tatar: индивидуальлек (indiwiduwalʹlek) — moral stance
  • Telugu: వ్యక్తివాదం (vyaktivādaṁ) — moral stance
  • Thai: ปัจเจกนิยม (bpàt-jàyk ní-yom) — moral stance
  • Turkish: bireycilik — moral stance
  • Turkmen: indiwidualizm — moral stance
  • Ukrainian: індивідуалі́зм (indyvidualízm) — moral stance
  • Uzbek: индивидуализм (individualizm) — moral stance
  • Uzbek: individualizm — moral stance
  • Vietnamese: chủ nghĩa cá nhân — moral stance
  • Vietnamese: cá nhân chủ nghĩa — moral stance
  • Vietnamese: chủ nghĩa cá thể — moral stance
  • Welsh: unigolyddiaeth — moral stance