I. ˈpä-pyə-list noun
Etymology: Latin populus the people
Date: 1892
1. : a member of a political party claiming to represent the common people ; especially often capitalized : a member of a United States political party formed in 1891 primarily to represent agrarian interests and to advocate the free coinage of silver and government control of monopolies
2. : a believer in the rights, wisdom, or virtues of the common people
• pop·u·lism -ˌli-zəm noun
• pop·u·lis·tic ˌpä-pyə-ˈlis-tik adjective
II. adjective
Date: 1893
1. often capitalized : of, relating to, or characterized by populism
2.
a. : popular 1
b. : popular 2