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iron curtain

American  
[ahy-ern kur-tn] / ˈaɪ ərn ˈkɜr tn /
Or Iron Curtain

noun

  1. Usually the Iron Curtain the Cold War barrier created by political, ideological, and military hostility between Western democracies on the one hand and the Soviet Union and its allies on the other, preventing mutual understanding and the exchange of ideas, travel, etc..

    Even when I was living behind the Iron Curtain, some popular music seeped through from the West.

  2. any barrier preventing the passage of ideas or understanding, especially an ideological, philosophical, or cultural barrier that divides countries, groups of people, or individuals.

    An iron curtain between theoreticians and creative artists prevented either group from appreciating the contributions of the other.

  3. an impenetrable barrier to communication or information imposed by rigid censorship or secrecy.

    The incident is a growing embarrassment for the country on the international stage, meaning that an iron curtain must fall on the subject.

  4. Theater. a safety curtain made of iron or other metal.

Iron Curtain British  

noun

    1. (formerly) the guarded border between the countries of the Soviet bloc and the rest of Europe

    2. ( as modifier )

      Iron Curtain countries
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Iron Curtain Cultural  

  1. The former division between the communist nations of eastern Europe — the Eastern Bloc — and the noncommunist nations of western Europe. The term refers to the isolation that the Soviet Union imposed on its satellites in the Eastern Bloc and to the repressive measures of many Eastern Bloc governments. (See Berlin Wall (see also Berlin Wall) and cold war.)

Discover More

The expression Iron Curtain was coined by Winston Churchill, who was prime minister of Britain in World War II. Churchill first used the term soon after the war, when the Soviet Union was beginning to carry out its plans for postwar dominance of eastern Europe.

Etymology

Origin of iron curtain

Used in 1946 by Sir Winston Churchill to describe the line of demarcation between Western Europe and the Soviet zone of influence

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.

“They were not designed for a situation in which an iron curtain descends,” he said.

From New York Times • Jan. 27, 2023

“As soon as we saw this iron curtain descend again, we thought: What can we do to save ExoMars?”

From Science Magazine • Mar. 28, 2022

"If there is a new iron curtain, we do not want to be behind it," he said, referring to the Western term for a dividing line between eastern and western Europe during the Cold War.

From Reuters • Mar. 28, 2022

“I think we’re in danger of seeing a financial iron curtain being reestablished,” said Jim Krane, a research fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute in Houston.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 1, 2022

A twenty-six-year-old pilot stationed at Turner Air Force Base in Georgia, Powers was trained to deliver atomic bombs behind the iron curtain.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

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.