Bolshevik

Or bol·she·vik

[bohl-shuh-vik, bol-, buhl-shi-vyeek]

noun

plural

Bolsheviks, Bolsheviki 

1. (in Russia)

   1. a member of the more radical majority of the Social Democratic Party, 1903–17, advocating immediate and forceful seizure of power by the proletariat.

   2. (after 1918) a member of the Russian Communist Party.

2. (loosely) a member of any Communist party.

3. (often lowercase),  a contemptuous term used to refer to an extreme radical or revolutionary.

Bolshevik

/ ˈbɒlʃɪvɪk /

noun

1. (formerly) a Russian Communist Compare Menshevik

2. any Communist

3. humorous,  (often not capital) any political radical, esp a revolutionary

Other Word Forms

• anti-Bolshevik noun
• non-Bolshevik noun
• pro-Bolshevik adjective
• Bolshevism noun
• Bolshevist adjective
• Bolshevistic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Bolshevik¹

1915–20; < Russian bolʾshevík, equivalent to bólʾsh ( iĭ ) larger, greater (comparative of bolʾshóĭ large; compare bolʾshinstvó majority) + -evik, variant of -ovik noun suffix; Menshevik

Word History and Origins

Origin of Bolshevik¹

C20: from Russian Bol'shevik majority, from bol'shoi great; from the fact that this group formed a majority of the Russian Social Democratic Party in 1903

Example Sentences

He has called the statehood of Ukraine into question, saying the country was a creation of Soviet Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Surviving relatives of Tsar Nicholas II also lived there after fleeing to the UK, following the murder of other family members by Bolsheviks in 1918.

Read more on BBC

Born in 1927, a decade after the Bolshevik Revolution, his work was steeped in the traditions of classical ballet.

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The diplomatic whirlwind that has surrounded US President Donald Trump this week suggests the old Bolshevik might have been onto something.

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Leadership values change, but being placed under permanent house arrest by the Bolsheviks at the luxury Hotel Metropol in “A Gentleman in Moscow” doesn’t stop Alexander from dressing the aristocratic part.

Read more on Los Angeles Times