nanny state

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noun

a government perceived as authoritarian, interfering, or overprotective.

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TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

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What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

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Origin of nanny state

First recorded in 1965–70

Words nearby nanny state

nanny, nannyberry, nanny cam, nannygai, nanny goat, nanny state, nanny tax, nano, nanobe, nanobot, nanocephaly

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use nanny state in a sentence

Even in a pandemic-set reunion, Ron said nothing negative about what many real people with his politics saw as a mask-mandating nanny state.
Ted Lasso and TV's Strange Quest to Build the Perfect Man|Judy Berman|July 19, 2021|Time
Tell them they can quit wearing the mask after the vaccine … give them a reward instead of telling them the nanny state is going to be there for three more years, and you’ve got to wear a mask forever.
House passes bills to open path to citizenship for young undocumented immigrants, legal status for farmworkers|John Wagner, Colby Itkowitz, Amy B Wang|March 19, 2021|Washington Post
Dental leaders barnstormed the state, and cities began to fluoridate.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
But on Thursday Boxer triggered a Golden State political earthquake, announcing that she would not seek a fifth term in 2016.
The Golden State Preps for the ‘Red Wedding’ of Senate Races|David Freedlander|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Meanwhile, in Florida, Bush was flooded with questions about whether gay marriage could possibly come to the Sunshine State.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This week, Florida became the 36th state to allow same-sex marriage.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But if you have a hearing and you prove that someone is mature enough, well then that state interest evaporates.
Should Teens Have The Right To Die?|Brandy Zadrozny|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
If we can free this State of Yankees, we will accomplish more than your armies down south have.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn
Walls End Castle, when the party broke up, returned to its normal state.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
The next morning he came rushing into the office, in a violent state of excitement.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
He could not tell what I meant by secrets of state, where an enemy or some rival nation were not in the case.
Gulliver's Travels|Jonathan Swift
From the very first of the war their work was to help exterminate the guerrilla bands which infested the State.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn

British Dictionary definitions for nanny state

nanny state

noun

a government that makes decisions for people that they might otherwise make for themselves, esp those relating to private and personal behaviour

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