If you call someone a philistine, you mean that they do not care about or understand good art, music, or literature, and do not think that they are important.
[disapproval]
Synonyms: boor, barbarian, yahoo, lout More Synonyms of Philistine
2. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
You can use philistine to describe people or organizations who you think do not care about or understand the value of good art, music, or literature.
[disapproval]
...a philistine government that allowed the arts to decline.
...a philistine city lacking in elegance.
Synonyms: uncultured, ignorant, crass, tasteless More Synonyms of Philistine
Philistine in British English
(ˈfɪlɪˌstaɪn)
noun
1.
a person who is unreceptive to or hostile towards culture, the arts, etc; a smug boorish person
2.
a member of the non-Semitic people who inhabited ancient Philistia
adjective
3. (sometimes not capital)
boorishly uncultured
4.
of or relating to the ancient Philistines
Derived forms
Philistinism (ˈfɪlɪstɪˌnɪzəm)
noun
Philistine in American English
(ˈfɪlɪˌstin; ˈfɪlɪˌstaɪn; fɪˈlɪstɪn; fɪˈlɪsˌtin)
noun
1.
a member of a non-Semitic people that lived in Philistia and repeatedly warred with the Israelites
2. [usuallyp-]
a person regarded as smugly narrow and conventional in views and tastes, lacking in and indifferent to cultural and aesthetic values
adjective
3.
of the ancient Philistines or their culture
4. [oftenp-]
smugly conventional and lacking in culture
Derived forms
philistinism (philˈistinˌism)
noun
Word origin
ME < LL(Ec) Philistinus, usually pl. Philistini < LGr (Josephus) philistinoi < Heb p'lishtim; akin to Palestine; (sense 2) adapted < Ger Philister, orig. student slang for townspeople
Examples of 'Philistine' in a sentence
Philistine
After all, he denounced as philistine all art that exhibited clear sympathies or broadcast explicit messages.
The Times Literary Supplement (2014)
"Go home, you revolting little Philistine ," she said, turned on her heel and went through into Sister Declan's classroom.
Colleen McCullough THE THORN BIRDS (1977)
(noun)
Definition
a person who is hostile towards culture and the arts
The man's a total philistine when it comes to the arts.
Synonyms
boor
He was a braggart, a cynic and a boor.
barbarian
The visitors looked upon us all as barbarians.
yahoo
a typical City merchant banking yahoo
lout
a drunken lout
bourgeois
hoon (Australian, New Zealand)
ignoramus
I am an ignoramus regarding technical matters.
lowbrow
vulgarian
Goth
cougan (Australian, slang)
scozza (Australian, slang)
bogan (Australian, slang)
(adjective)
Definition
boorishly uncultured
the country's philistine, consumerist mentality
Synonyms
uncultured
ignorant
They don't ask questions for fear of appearing ignorant.
crass
They have behaved with crass insensitivity.
tasteless
bourgeois
uneducated
It looks amateurish to the uneducated eye.
boorish
the boorish behaviour of some players
unrefined
an unrefined boor
uncultivated
anti-intellectual
lowbrow
inartistic
Additional synonyms
in the sense of barbarian
Definition
a coarse or vicious person
The visitors looked upon us all as barbarians.
Synonyms
lout,
hooligan,
illiterate,
vandal,
yahoo,
bigot,
philistine,
ned (Scottish, slang),
hoon (Australian, New Zealand),
cougan (Australian, slang),
scozza (Australian, slang),
bogan (Australian, slang),
ruffian,
ignoramus,
boor,
boot boy,
lowbrow,
vulgarian
in the sense of boorish
the boorish behaviour of some players
Synonyms
loutish,
gross,
crude,
rude,
hick (informal, US, Canadian),
coarse,
vulgar,
rustic,
barbaric,
churlish,
uneducated,
bearish,
uncouth,
unrefined,
uncivilized,
clownish,
oafish,
lubberly
in the sense of crass
Definition
stupid and insensitive
They have behaved with crass insensitivity.
Synonyms
insensitive,
stupid,
gross,
blundering,
dense,
coarse,
bovine,
witless,
boorish,
obtuse,
unrefined,
asinine,
indelicate,
oafish,
lumpish,
doltish
Nearby words of
philistine
philanthropist
philanthropy
philippic
philistine
philosopher
philosophical
philosophy
Synonyms of 'philistine'
philistine
Explore 'philistine' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of ignoramus
Definition
an ignorant person
I am an ignoramus regarding technical matters.
Synonyms
dunce,
fool,
ass,
donkey,
bonehead (slang),
duffer (informal),
simpleton,
dullard (old-fashioned),
dolt,
blockhead,
lowbrow,
putz (US, slang),
fathead (informal),
eejit (Scottish, Irish),
thicko (British, slang),
numpty (Scottish, informal),
doofus (slang, US),
numbskull or numskull,
dorba or dorb (Australian, slang),
bogan (Australian, slang)
in the sense of ignorant
Definition
lacking in knowledge or education
They don't ask questions for fear of appearing ignorant.