scorched earth
See also: scorched-earth
English
editEtymology
editCalque from Chinese 焦土 (jiāotǔ, “scorched earth; ravages of war”), originally in reference to the strategy adopted by the Chinese government in the Second Sino-Japanese War. First attested in 1937 as an idiom.[1]
Noun
edit- (military) Land that has been abandoned, in the face of an advancing enemy, after the destruction of all resources on it.
- (military) The strategy of destroying all resources in an area of land in order to deny their use to an advancing enemy.
Derived terms
editTranslations
editTranslations
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Adjective
editscorched earth (comparative more scorched earth, superlative most scorched earth)
- Alternative spelling of scorched-earth
References
edit- ^ “scorched earth, n.” under “scorched, adj.”, in OED Online , Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.