essentialist adjective 1noun 1forms 3 adjective1 •Of or pertaining to essentialism.Christian men in the 1990’s made their own essentialist retreat, responding to a devaluation of masculinity in the institutions of work and the family (Heath 2003; Messner, 1997). — 2020 noun1 •An advocate of essentialism. formsessentialists · more essentialist · most essentialist