Rationalism is either of two related, but distinct, philosophies.

• Rationalism, a movement which asserts that reason and evidence should be held superior to religious teachings. This can also be extended to assert a general superiority of reason, for example over emotion.
• Continental rationalism, a belief that reason is the source of all knowledge in contrast to the experience of the senses.

In colloquial English the term rationalism usually refers to the first definition, whereas continental rationalism is relatively unknown by non-philosophers.