McCarthyism

English

Etymology

Named after United States Senator Joseph McCarthy. Originates from a 1950 Washington Post political cartoon by Herbert Block.

Noun

McCarthyism (usually uncountable, plural McCarthyisms)

1. (derogatory) The mass pressure, harassment, and/or blacklisting used to pressure people to follow popular political beliefs, especially as opposed to communism.

Translations

mass pressure

• Catalan: cacera de bruixes f
• German: Blockwartmentalität f

Proper noun

McCarthyism

1. The intense opposition to, and fear and suspicion of, Communism, particularly in the United States during the 1950s.

   Hypernym: anticommunism

   • 1964, Daniel Bell, The Radical Right, page 234:

     An important symptom of the difference between McCarthyism and Birchism is the shift in the geographical center of gravity.

Translations

intense opposition to Communism

• Belarusian: макарці́зм (makarcízm)
• Catalan: maccarthisme m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 麥卡錫主義／麦卡锡主义 (zh) (Màikǎxīzhǔyì)

• Finnish: mccarthyismi
• French: maccarthysme (fr) m
• German: McCarthyismus (de) m
• Italian: maccartismo (it) m
• Japanese: マッカーシズム (makkāshizumu)
• Polish: maccartyzm (pl) m, makkartyzm m
• Portuguese: macartismo m, macarthismo m
• Russian: маккарти́зм (ru) m (makkartízm)
• Spanish: macartismo m, macarthismo m, maccarthismo m, mccarthismo m
• Vietnamese: chủ nghĩa McCarthy

Related terms

• McCarthyist
• McCarthyistic
• McCarthyite
• McCarthyesque

See also

• witch-hunt