fascism - Definitions from Dictionary.com

5 results for: fascism

Browse Nearby Entries

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

fas·cism

Audio Help [fash-iz-uh

m] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	(sometimes initial capital letter) a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry, commerce, etc., and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism and often racism.

2.	(sometimes initial capital letter) the philosophy, principles, or methods of fascism.

3.	(initial capital letter) a fascist movement, esp. the one established by Mussolini in Italy 1922–43.

[Origin: 1915–20; < It fascismo, equiv. to fasc(io) bundle, political group (see fasces) + -ismo -ism

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
fascism

To learn more about fascism visit Britannica.com

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

fas·cism Audio Help (fāsh'ĭz'əm) Pronunciation Key
n.

often Fascism
1. A system of government marked by centralization of authority under a dictator, stringent socioeconomic controls, suppression of the opposition through terror and censorship, and typically a policy of belligerent nationalism and racism.
2. A political philosophy or movement based on or advocating such a system of government.
Oppressive, dictatorial control.

[Italian fascismo, from fascio, group, from Late Latin fascium, from Latin fascis, bundle.]

fas·cis'tic (fə-shĭs'tĭk) adj.

Word History: It is fitting that the name of an authoritarian political movement like Fascism, founded in 1919 by Benito Mussolini, should come from the name of a symbol of authority. The Italian name of the movement, fascismo, is derived from fascio, "bundle, (political) group," but also refers to the movement's emblem, the fasces, a bundle of rods bound around a projecting axe-head that was carried before an ancient Roman magistrate by an attendant as a symbol of authority and power. The name of Mussolini's group of revolutionaries was soon used for similar nationalistic movements in other countries that sought to gain power through violence and ruthlessness, such as National Socialism.

(Download Now or Buy the Book)

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

fascism
noun
a political theory advocating an authoritarian hierarchical government (as opposed to democracy or liberalism)

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Fascism [ˈfӕʃizəm] noun

a nationalistic and anti-Communist system of government like that of Italy 1922-43, where all aspects of society are controlled by the state and all criticism or opposition is suppressed

Arabic:	الفاشِيَّـه، الفاشِسْتِيَّه
Chinese (Simplified):	法西斯主义
Chinese (Traditional):	法西斯主義
Czech:	fašismus
Danish:	fascisme
Dutch:	fascisme
Estonian:	fašism
Finnish:	fasismi
French:	fascisme
German:	der Faschismus
Greek:	φασισμός
Hungarian:	fasizmus
Icelandic:	fasismi
Indonesian:	fasisme
Italian:	fascismo

Japanese:	ファシズム
Latvian:	fašisms
Lithuanian:	faðizmas
Norwegian:	fascisme
Polish:	faszyzm
Portuguese (Brazil):	fascismo
Portuguese (Portugal):	Fascismo
Romanian:	fascism
Russian:	фашизм
Slovak:	fašizmus
Slovenian:	fašizem
Spanish:	fascismo
Swedish:	fascism
Turkish:	Faşizm

See also: fascist

American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
fascism [(fash-iz-uhm)]

A system of government that flourished in Europe from the 1920s to the end of World War II. Germany under Adolf Hitler, Italy under Mussolini, and Spain under Franco were all fascist states. As a rule, fascist governments are dominated by a dictator, who usually possesses a magnetic personality, wears a showy uniform, and rallies his followers by mass parades; appeals to strident nationalism; and promotes suspicion or hatred of both foreigners and “impure” people within his own nation, such as the Jews in Germany. Although both communism and fascism are forms of totalitarianism, fascism does not demand state ownership of the means of production, nor is fascism committed to the achievement of economic equality. In theory, communism opposes the identification of government with a single charismatic leader (the “cult of personality”), which is the cornerstone of fascism. Whereas communists are considered left-wing, fascists are usually described as right-wing.

Note: Today, the term fascist is used loosely to refer to military dictatorships, as well as governments or individuals that profess racism and that act in an arbitrary, high-handed manner.

[Chapter:] World History since 1550

Browse Nearby Entries: