See Also: nihilist(dictionary)

nihilist (iou)



nihilist noun & adjective. In sense A.2 & corresp. uses of the adjective usu. Nihilist. M19.
[formed as NIHILISM + -IST, partly after German Nihilist, French nihiliste, Russian nigilist.]
A. noun.
A believer in nihilism. M19.
Hist. A member of a revolutionary party in 19th-cent. and early 20th-cent. Russia which sought the complete overthrow of the established order and was willing to use terrorism to achieve this end. L19.
b. attrib. or as adjective. Of or pertaining to nihilists or nihilism. L19.
nihi'listic adjective of, pertaining to, or characterized by nihilism; of the nature of nihilism: M19.