| priapism | (noun) condition in which the penis is continually erect; usually painful and seldom with sexual arousal | - |
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| primitivism | (noun) a genre characteristic of (or imitative of) primitive artists or children | - |
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| (noun) a wild or unrefined state | Synonyms: crudeness, crudity, primitiveness, rudeness |
| prism | (noun) optical device having a triangular shape and made of glass or quartz; used to deviate a beam or invert an image | Synonyms: optical prism |
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| (noun) a polyhedron with two congruent and parallel faces (the bases) and whose lateral faces are parallelograms | - |
| probabilism | (noun) (philosophy) the doctrine that (since certainty is unattainable) probability is a sufficient basis for belief and action | - |
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| (noun) a Roman Catholic system of casuistry that when expert opinions differ an actor can follow any solidly probable opinion that he wishes even though some different opinion might be more probable | - |
| professionalism | (noun) the expertness characteristic of a professional person | - |
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| prognathism | (noun) the condition of being prognathous; the condition of having a projecting jaw | - |
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| progressivism | (noun) the political orientation of those who favor progress toward better conditions in government and society | - |
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| proletarianism | (noun) The condition or political position of a member of the working class. | - |
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| proselytism | (noun) the state of being a proselyte; spiritual rebirth resulting from the zeal of crusading advocacy of the gospel | - |
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| (noun) the practice of proselytizing | - |
| protagonism | (noun) active support of an idea or cause etc.; especially the act of pleading or arguing for something | Synonyms: advocacy |
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| protectionism | (noun) the policy of imposing duties or quotas on imports in order to protect home industries from overseas competition | - |
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| provincialism | (noun) a partiality for some particular place | Synonyms: localism, sectionalism |
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| (noun) a lack of sophistication | - |
| pseudohermaphroditism | (noun) congenital condition in which a person has external genitalia of one sex and internal sex organs of the other sex | - |
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| ptyalism | (noun) excessive flow of saliva | - |
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| pugilism | (noun) fighting with the fists | Synonyms: boxing, fisticuffs |
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| purism | (noun) scrupulous or exaggerated insistence on purity or correctness (especially in language) | - |
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| quietism | (noun) a form of religious mysticism requiring withdrawal from all human effort and passive contemplation of God | - |
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| quislingism | (noun) act of cooperating traitorously with an enemy that is occupying your country | Synonyms: collaboration, collaborationism |
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| quixotism | (noun) quixotic (romantic and impractical) behavior | Synonyms: knight errantry |
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| racialism | (noun) discriminatory or abusive behavior towards members of another race | Synonyms: racial discrimination, racism |
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| racism | (noun) discriminatory or abusive behavior towards members of another race | Synonyms: racial discrimination, racialism |
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| (noun) the prejudice that members of one race are intrinsically superior to members of other races | - |
| radicalism | (noun) the political orientation of those who favor revolutionary change in government and society | - |
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| rationalism | (noun) the doctrine that reason is the right basis for regulating conduct | Synonyms: freethinking |
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| (noun) (philosophy) the doctrine that knowledge is acquired by reason without resort to experience | - |
| (noun) the theological doctrine that human reason rather than divine revelation establishes religious truth | - |
| reactionism | (noun) the political orientation of reactionaries | - |
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| realism | (noun) the attribute of accepting the facts of life and favoring practicality and literal truth | Synonyms: pragmatism |
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| (noun) (philosophy) the philosophical doctrine that physical objects continue to exist when not perceived | Synonyms: naive realism |
| (noun) (philosophy) the philosophical doctrine that abstract concepts exist independent of their names | Synonyms: Platonism |
| (noun) an artistic movement in 19th century France; artists and writers strove for detailed realistic and factual description | Synonyms: naturalism |
| (noun) the state of being actual or real | Synonyms: reality, realness |
| recidivism | (noun) habitual relapse into crime | - |
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| reductionism | (noun) a theory that all complex systems can be completely understood in terms of their components | - |
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| (noun) the analysis of complex things into simpler constituents | - |
| reductivism | (noun) an art movement in sculpture and painting that began in the 1950s and emphasized extreme simplification of form and color | Synonyms: minimal art, minimalism |
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| reformism | (noun) a doctrine of reform | - |
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| regionalism | (noun) loyalty to the interests of a particular region | - |
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| (noun) a feature (as a pronunciation or expression or custom) that is characteristic of a particular region | - |
| (noun) a foreign policy that defines the international interests of a country in terms of particular geographic areas | - |
| reincarnationism | (noun) a doctrine that on the death of the body the soul migrates to or is born again in another body | - |
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| relativism | (noun) (philosophy) the philosophical doctrine that all criteria of judgment are relative to the individuals and situations involved | - |
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| religionism | (noun) exaggerated or affected piety and religious zeal | Synonyms: pietism, religiosity, religiousism |
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| (noun) exaggerated religious zealotry | - |
| religiousism | (noun) exaggerated or affected piety and religious zeal | Synonyms: pietism, religionism, religiosity |
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| republicanism | (noun) the political orientation of those who hold that a republic is the best form of government | - |
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| revisionism | (noun) a moderate evolutionary form of Marxism | - |
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| (noun) any dangerous departure from the teachings of Marx | - |
| revivalism | (noun) an attempt to reawaken the evangelical faith | - |
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| revolutionism | (noun) a belief in the spread of revolutionary principles | - |
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| rheumatism | (noun) any painful disorder of the joints or muscles or connective tissues | - |
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| (noun) a chronic autoimmune disease with inflammation of the joints and marked deformities; something (possibly a virus) triggers an attack on the synovium by the immune system, which releases cytokines that stimulate an inflammatory reaction that can lead to the destruction of all components of the joint | Synonyms: atrophic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis |
| rightism | (noun) the ideology of the political right; belief in or support of the tenets of the political right | - |
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| ritualism | (noun) exaggerated emphasis on the importance of rites or ritualistic forms in worship | - |
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| (noun) the study of religious or magical rites and ceremonies | - |
| romanticism | (noun) impractical romantic ideals and attitudes | - |
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| (noun) an exciting and mysterious quality (as of a heroic time or adventure) | Synonyms: romance |
| rowdyism | (noun) rowdy behavior | Synonyms: disorderliness, roughness, rowdiness |
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| royalism | (noun) adherence or attachment to a monarchy or to the principle of monarchal government | - |
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| ruffianism | (noun) violent lawless behavior | - |
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| ruralism | (noun) a rural characteristic or trait | Synonyms: rurality |
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| (noun) a rural idiom or expression | Synonyms: rusticism |
| (noun) Advocacy of rural life instead of urbanism or city living. | - |
| rusticism | (noun) a rural idiom or expression | Synonyms: ruralism |
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| sabianism | (noun) the religion of a group mentioned in the Koran as entitled to Muslim religious toleration along with Jews and Christians and usually identified with the Mandaeans or the Elkesaites. | - |
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| sacerdotalism | (noun) a belief that priests can act as mediators between human beings and God | - |
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| sadism | (noun) sexual pleasure obtained by inflicting harm (physical or psychological) on others | - |
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| sadomasochism | (noun) sadism and masochism combined in one person | - |
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| sapphism | (noun) female homosexuality | Synonyms: lesbianism |
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| saturnism | (noun) toxic condition produced by the absorption of excessive lead into the system | Synonyms: lead poisoning, plumbism |
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| scepticism | (noun) the disbelief in any claims of ultimate knowledge | Synonyms: agnosticism, skepticism |
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| (noun) doubt about the truth of something | Synonyms: disbelief, incredulity, mental rejection, skepticism |
| schism | (noun) division of a group into opposing factions | Synonyms: split |
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| (noun) the formal separation of a church into two churches or the withdrawal of one group over doctrinal differences | - |
| scholasticism | (noun) orthodoxy of a scholastic variety | Synonyms: academicism, academism |
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| sciolism | (noun) pretentious superficiality of knowledge | - |
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| secessionism | (noun) a doctrine that maintains the right of secession | - |
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| sectarianism | (noun) a narrow-minded adherence to a particular sect or party or denomination | Synonyms: denominationalism |
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| sectionalism | (noun) a partiality for some particular place | Synonyms: localism, provincialism |
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| secularism | (noun) a doctrine that rejects religion and religious considerations | - |
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| segregationism | (noun) a political orientation favoring political or racial segregation | - |
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| seism | (noun) shaking and vibration at the surface of the earth resulting from underground movement along a fault plane or from volcanic activity | Synonyms: earthquake, quake, temblor |
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| sensationalism | (noun) (philosophy) the doctrine that knowledge derives from experience | Synonyms: empiricism, empiricist philosophy |
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| (noun) (philosophy) the ethical doctrine that feeling is the only criterion for what is good | Synonyms: sensualism |
| (noun) the journalistic use of subject matter that appeals to vulgar tastes | Synonyms: luridness |
| (noun) subject matter that is calculated to excite and please vulgar tastes | - |
| sensualism | (noun) (philosophy) the ethical doctrine that feeling is the only criterion for what is good | Synonyms: sensationalism |
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| (noun) desire for sensual pleasures | Synonyms: sensuality, sensualness |
| sentimentalism | (noun) a predilection for sentimentality | - |
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| (noun) the excessive expression of tender feelings, nostalgia, or sadness in any form | - |
| separationism | (noun) advocacy of a policy of strict separation of church and state | Synonyms: separatism |
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| separatism | (noun) advocacy of a policy of strict separation of church and state | Synonyms: separationism |
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| (noun) a disposition toward schism and secession from a larger group; the principles and practices of separatists | - |
| (noun) a social system that provides separate facilities for minority groups | Synonyms: segregation |
| serialism | (noun) 20th century music that uses a definite order of notes as a thematic basis for a musical composition | Synonyms: serial music |
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| sermonism | (noun) the conceptualism of Abelard. | - |
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| servomechanism | (noun) control system that converts a small mechanical motion into one requiring much greater power; may include a negative feedback system | Synonyms: servo, servosystem |
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| sexism | (noun) discriminatory or abusive behavior towards members of the opposite sex | - |
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| shamanism | (noun) an animistic religion of northern Asia having the belief that the mediation between the visible and the spirit worlds is effected by shamans | Synonyms: Asian shamanism |
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| (noun) any animistic religion similar to Asian shamanism (especially as practiced by certain Native American tribes) | - |
| simplism | (noun) an act of excessive simplification; the act of making something seem simpler than it really is | Synonyms: oversimplification |
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| (noun) an explanation that simplifies too far to the point of misrepresentation | Synonyms: oversimplification |
| sinapism | (noun) a plaster containing powdered black mustard; applied to the skin as a counterirritant or rubefacient | Synonyms: mustard plaster |
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| skepticism | (noun) doubt about the truth of something | Synonyms: disbelief, incredulity, mental rejection, scepticism |
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| (noun) the disbelief in any claims of ultimate knowledge | Synonyms: agnosticism, scepticism |
| snobbism | (noun) the trait of condescending to those of lower social status | Synonyms: snobbery, snobbishness |
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| socialism | (noun) a political theory advocating state ownership of industry | - |
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| (noun) an economic system based on state ownership of capital | Synonyms: socialist economy |
| solecism | (noun) a socially awkward or tactless act | Synonyms: faux pas, gaffe, gaucherie, slip |
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| solipsism | (noun) (philosophy) the philosophical theory that the self is all that you know to exist | - |
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| somnambulism | (noun) walking by a person who is asleep | Synonyms: noctambulation, noctambulism, sleepwalking, somnambulation |
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| somniloquism | (noun) uttering speech while asleep | Synonyms: sleep talking, somniloquy |
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| sophism | (noun) a deliberately invalid argument displaying ingenuity in reasoning in the hope of deceiving someone | Synonyms: sophistication, sophistry |
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| southernism | (noun) an attitude characteristic of Southerners (especially in the US) | - |
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| (noun) a locution or pronunciation peculiar to the southern United States | - |
| sovietism | (noun) Soviet communism | Synonyms: Bolshevism, collectivism |
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| spatialism | (noun) an art movement founded by Italian artist Lucio Fontana in Milan in 1947 in which he intended to synthesize colour, sound, space, movement, and time into a new type of art. | - |
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| specialism | (noun) the special line of work you have adopted as your career | Synonyms: specialisation, speciality, specialization, specialty |
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| (noun) the concentration of your efforts on a particular field of study or occupation | - |
| spiritism | (noun) concern with things of the spirit | Synonyms: otherworldliness, spiritualism, spirituality |
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| spiritualism | (noun) concern with things of the spirit | Synonyms: otherworldliness, spiritism, spirituality |
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| (noun) the belief that the spirits of dead people can communicate with people who are still alive (especially via a medium) | - |
| (noun) (theology) any doctrine that asserts the separate existence of God | - |
| spoonerism | (noun) transposition of initial consonants in a pair of words | - |
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| sticklerism | (noun) The behaviour of a stickler; inflexible adherence to rules. | - |
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| stigmatism | (noun) normal eyesight | - |
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| (noun) (optics) condition of an optical system (as a lens) in which light rays from a single point converge in a single focal point | - |
| (noun) the condition of having or being marked by stigmata | - |
| stoicism | (noun) an indifference to pleasure or pain | Synonyms: stolidity, stolidness |
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| structuralism | (noun) linguistics defined as the analysis of formal structures in a text or discourse | Synonyms: structural linguistics |
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| (noun) an anthropological theory that there are unobservable social structures that generate observable social phenomena | Synonyms: structural anthropology |
| (noun) a sociological theory based on the premise that society comes before individuals | Synonyms: structural sociology |
| subjectivism | (noun) the quality of being subjective | - |
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| (noun) (philosophy) the doctrine that knowledge and value are dependent on and limited by your subjective experience | - |
| suffragism | (noun) the belief that the right to vote should be extended (as to women) | - |
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| supernaturalism | (noun) the quality of being attributed to power that seems to violate or go beyond natural forces | Synonyms: supernaturalness |
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| (noun) a belief in forces beyond ordinary human understanding | - |
| superpatriotism | (noun) fanatical patriotism | Synonyms: chauvinism, jingoism, ultranationalism |
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| supremacism | (noun) the belief that some particular group or race is superior to all others | - |
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| suprematism | (noun) a geometric abstractionist movement originated by Kazimir Malevich in Russia that influenced constructivism | - |
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