What does zealotry mean?
Zealotry is intense and often uncritical devotion to a cause, belief, or leader. In contemporary English it usually carries a negative or cautionary tone: describing conduct as zealotry suggests that enthusiasm has hardened into fanaticism, intolerance, or a willingness to override evidence and ordinary moral restraint. The word can sometimes be used more neutrally when emphasizing energetic commitment, although zealousness is usually preferred when no criticism is intended. Zealotry appears especially often in political, religious, and ideological contexts, where it can refer to devotion felt by supporters and perceived by critics as excessive. Its power comes from the contrast it draws between admirable passion and destructive excess. Because the term carries a strongly evaluative charge, careful writers often specify what they regard as excessive rather than presenting it as a neutral description of enthusiasm. Nevertheless, zealotry is useful precisely because it captures a recognizable form of commitment in which ardour becomes its own justification.
nounIntense and often fanatical devotion to a cause, belief, or leader, especially when characterized by intolerance or excessive commitment.
- Fanatical or excessive devotion to a cause, belief, or leader.
"The online forum was accused of fostering political zealotry rather than encouraging informed debate."
"Religious zealotry sometimes turned public disagreement into persecution."
"Her speech warned that ideological zealotry could undermine democratic institutions."
The plural is grammatically standard but relatively uncommon; the singular is normally preferred in abstract contexts.
"The zealotries of rival factions dominated the campaign."
Zealotry is enthusiasm with the safety catch off: it begins in ardour but can tip into fanaticism.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does zealotry come from?
Zealotry entered English in the early 17th century, formed from zeal plus the suffix -try. Zeal comes through Latin zelus from Greek zēlos, meaning ardour or jealousy; the related Greek zēlōtēs, meaning zealot, also underlies the English word zealot. Jealous and jealousy are further English cognates through Latin zelosus.
How zealotry is actually used
Generally formal and commonly evaluative, often implying excessive, intolerant, or uncritical commitment. Its register and connotation are broadly similar in British and American English.
Easily confused with zealotry
Zealotry is the excessive or fanatical devotion itself, whereas a zealot is a person who displays it.
Zealotry is a noun naming a form of devotion, while zealous is an adjective describing enthusiastic or devoted conduct.