Definition of "realist"

realist¹

/ˈɹɪəlɪst/

noun
plural realists
1. (philosophy) An advocate of realism; one who believes that matter, objects etc. have real existence beyond our perception of them.
  Quotations
  Aristotle's own doctrine is far from clear. It was this lack of clarity that made possible the medieval controversy between nominalists and realists.
  1946, Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy, I.19
2. (art, literature) An adherent of the realism movement; an artist who seeks to portray real everyday life accurately.
3. One who believes in seeing things the way they really are, as opposed to how they would like them to be.

realist²

adjective
1. Eye dialect spelling of realest.