pragmatist

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Noun

pragmatist (plural pragmatists)

1. One who acts in a practical or straightforward manner; one who is pragmatic; one who values practicality or pragmatism.

   A pragmatist would never plant such a messy tree, but I like its flowers.

2. One who acts in response to particular situations rather than upon abstract ideals; one who is willing to ignore their ideals to accomplish goals.

   I'm not a thief, I am a pragmatist. I need this bread to feed my family.

   We cannot trust him not to lie for his own gain: he's an opportunist and a pragmatist.

3. One who belongs to the philosophic school of pragmatism; one who holds that the meaning of beliefs are the actions they entail, and that the truth of those beliefs consist in the actions they entail successfully leading a believer to their goals.
   • 2007, John Lachs and Robert Talisse, American Philosophy: An Encyclopedia, p. 310.

     [S]ome pragmatists (such as William James) took a more pantheist or pandeist approach by rejecting views of God as separate from the world.

4. (politics) An advocate of pragmatism.
5. One who studies pragmatics.

Related terms

• pragma
• pragmatically
• pragmatics
• pragmatism

Adjective

pragmatist

1. (politics) Advocating pragmatism.

   • Historians also suggest that Roosevelt was a pragmatist in foreign affairs, in that his policies were determined by practical consequences rather than by any philosophy.

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