McCarthyism
Americannoun
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the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, especially of pro-Communist activity, in many instances unsupported by proof or based on slight, doubtful, or irrelevant evidence.
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the practice of making unfair allegations or using unfair investigative techniques, especially in order to restrict dissent or political criticism.
noun
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the practice of making unsubstantiated accusations of disloyalty or Communist leanings
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the use of unsupported accusations for any purpose
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McCarthyism has become a general term for the hysterical investigation of a government's opponents or the publicizing of accusations against these opponents without sufficient evidence to support the charges.
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Origin of McCarthyism
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Look at the many cinematic versions of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”: The 1956 film is a McCarthyism allegory, steeped in the paranoia of the enemy hiding in plain view.
From Salon • Dec. 29, 2025
The following essay is based on Clay Risen’s new book Red Scare: Blacklists, McCarthyism, and the Making of Modern America, out from Scribner on March 18.
From Slate • Mar. 17, 2025
She spoke out against investigations against her fellow scientists during the wave of McCarthyism that spread across the US, and she even wrote to the Atomic Energy Commission to complain about the proceedings.
From Scientific American • Aug. 24, 2023
In time, Sherwin amassed some 50,000 pages of declassified government documents outlining Oppenheimer’s years as director of the Los Alamos lab and the subsequent loss of his security clearance during the panic of McCarthyism.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 18, 2023
"McCarthyism" became a catchphrase for the hunt for communist subversives, a frenzy that would engulf the United States for the rest of the 1950s.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
