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• left wing
  left wing

  noun

  members of a liberal or radical political party, or those favoring extensive political reform.
• left-wing
  left-wing

  A descriptive term for liberal, radical, or revolutionary political views, particularly the view that there are unacceptable social inequalities in the present order of society. Communists and socialists, as well as moderate liberals, come under the term left-wing. Left-wing groups are sometimes known collectively as the Left. (Compare right-wing.)

left wing

American  

noun

• left wings
  plural

1. members of a liberal or radical political party, or those favoring extensive political reform.

2. such a party or a group of such parties.

3. the part of a political or social organization advocating a liberal or radical position.

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left wing British  

noun

1. (often capital) the leftist faction of an assembly, party, group, etc; the radical or progressive wing

2. the units of an army situated on the left of a battle position

3. sport

   1. the left-hand side of the field of play from the point of view of either team facing its opponents' goal

   2. a player positioned in this area in certain games

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adjective

1. of, belonging to, or relating to the political left wing

left-wing ¹ Cultural  

1. A descriptive term for liberal, radical, or revolutionary political views, particularly the view that there are unacceptable social inequalities in the present order of society. Communists and socialists, as well as moderate liberals, come under the term left-wing. Left-wing groups are sometimes known collectively as the Left. (Compare right-wing.)

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left-wing ² Cultural  

1. A descriptive term for an individual or a political faction that advocates liberal, radical, or even revolutionary policies, usually in favor of overcoming social inequalities. In the United States, left-wing groups generally support federal social welfare programs designed to open opportunities to all citizens. (Compare right-wing.)

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left wing Idioms  

1. The liberal or radical faction of a political group, as in Many consider him a leader of the Democratic Party's left wing. This expression originated in the seating practice of European legislatures, whereby those holding liberal views were assigned to the left side of the house. [First half of 1800s]

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Discover More

Although both major political parties in the United States have left-wing factions, left-wing policies are usually associated with the Democratic party.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• left-winger
  noun
• left-wing
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• left wings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of left wing

First recorded in 1700–10

Compare meaning

How does left-wing compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• left wing vs. right wing

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

left wing left-wing

The hosts, only four points down at that stage, had a clear two-on-one 30m out down the left wing.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

Barcola is right footed but prefers to play on the left wing and his likely arrival adds further doubt around Cody Gakpo's future at Anfield.

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026

Ocasio-Cortez, widely known by her initials AOC, burst onto the national political scene with an upset congressional victory in 2018 and rapidly became a leading voice of the Democratic Party's left wing.

From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026

He is right footed, although he prefers to play on the left wing, but can also play on the right or through the middle.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

The Dragon King had spread his left wing outward to reveal the wound in his side.

From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep

She regrouped with the left-wing bloc and parliament re-elected her prime minister five days later, making her Sweden's first woman head of government since the abdication of Queen Ulrika Eleonora in 1720.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

"The Social Democrats are losing ground," she noted, even though the late stages of the campaign were dominated by traditional left-wing issues, notably healthcare, schools and benefits.

From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026

At the edge of the crowd, I ran into Redi Muci, a member of the Albanian parliament for the left-wing party Lëvizja Bashkë, which translates as the “Together Movement,” and the party’s leader, Arlind Qori.

From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026

In one widely shared video, Maleeha Akhter, 21, an activist with a left-wing student group, pretends to rock a baby.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026

Inspired by the Defiance Campaign, the COD was formed in late 1952 as a party for radical, left-wing, antigovernment whites.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Related Words

• leftist
• liberal