Great Firewall

British  

noun

1. informal a system that prevents access to websites deemed undesirable by the government of the People's Republic of China

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Etymology

Origin of Great Firewall

C21: a play on the _{Great Wall of China}

Example Sentences

When AI systems train on content from the Chinese internet, it is already scrubbed as part of China’s so-called Great Firewall, the system Beijing set up years ago to block online content it finds objectionable.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 24, 2025

But the system, which also lets the FSB security service spy on Russian citizens, is a relative sieve compared to China’s Great Firewall.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 13, 2022

The Great Firewall of China, as it is known, is perhaps the most obvious example of how a country can create its own web.

From BBC • Mar. 8, 2022

A more severe step would be creating an analog to China’s Great Firewall, which restricts access to foreign websites on the outside and strictly controls what is allowed inside.

From New York Times • Mar. 7, 2022

Even when a prosperous and rising China sought to close itself off from the global internet with a Great Firewall and vast censorship, the digital byways still erupted periodically with fury and criticism.

From Washington Post