How to Use primitivism in a Sentence

primitivism

noun
  • An instruction on joining us in our vision for the future, a return to primitivism.
    — Megan Armstrong, Billboard, 25 Oct. 2017
  • Parkipuny reclaimed the imagery of primitivism using the language of indigeneity.
    — Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2023
  • What attracts them all is the formula’s stubborn, sentimental primitivism, redeemed by charm.
    — Dan Neil, WSJ, 6 Jan. 2022
  • The Left has contempt for nationalism, seeing in it intellectual and moral primitivism at best, and the road to fascism at worst.
    — Dennis Prager, National Review, 12 Sep. 2017
  • Sonic Youth fans will be pleased to hear the elements of scuzz noise and high-art primitivism of that band injected into attitudinal riffs with sing-along charm of Talon's song.
    — John Adamian, courant.com, 30 Aug. 2017
  • There’s always been an underpinning of organic modernism and neo primitivism in their work that is a great pairing with the Loewe DNA.
    — Alex Wynne, Footwear News, 3 Oct. 2025
  • But the argument that a billionaire’s billions are a self-evident credential for national leadership is modern primitivism at its purest.
    — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, 15 Oct. 2019
  • As outlandish as Luhan may sound, neither her primitivism nor her spiritualism was particularly unusual in her time.
    — Rebecca Panovka, The New Yorker, 2 June 2021
  • Fringe beliefs such as anarcho-primitivism or eco-fascism have become familiar ideologies, and figures like Fuentes possess cultish influence.
    — Nathan Taylor Pemberton, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2021
  • Rather than a defense of chest-beating primitivism, the conclusion emphasizes the risks of male self-assertion untethered from purpose and responsibility.
    — Samuel Goldman, The Week, 3 Nov. 2021
  • Some, inspired by Netflix’s recent thriller about Ted Kaczynski, have embraced the Unabomber’s nihilist primitivism.
    — Sam Adler-Bell, The New Republic, 24 Sep. 2019
  • Curtis, meanwhile, was inclined to invent scenarios, expunging inconvenient details in order to emphasize a concept of primitivism.
    — Teju Cole, New York Times, 13 June 2017
  • Lacking Pippin’s political edge, primitivism and variety, Kane’s more conventional pictures, though sometimes fussy with details, consistently achieve more spatial clarity and light.
    — Lance Esplund, WSJ, 17 Aug. 2022
  • As the title suggests, Music In Continuous Motion picks up right where its predecessor left off, with Orcutt assembling overdubbed guitar lines into brief, interlocking pieces that balance rough-hewn primitivism against painterly precision.
    — Spin Staff, SPIN, 1 June 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'primitivism.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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