Orwellian

[ awr-wel-ee-uhn ]

/ ɔrˈwɛl i ən /

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adjective

of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or resembling the literary work of George Orwell or the totalitarian future described in his antiutopian novel 1984 (1949).

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The rainy weather could not ________ my elated spirits on my graduation day.

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Origin of Orwellian

1945–50; after G. Orwell + -ian

Words nearby Orwellian

ORV, Orvieto, Orville, Orwell, Orwell, George, Orwellian, or what, or whatever, -ory, Oryol, oryx

Example sentences from the Web for Orwellian

The ghost of George Orwell may be conjured too readily and too often, these days, but this truly is Orwellian.
The Kremlin’s Plan to Erase Russia’s Memory and Its Conscience|Anna Nemtsova|October 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Orwellian, Malthusian, barbarous, depraved…I think you get me.
Conservatives Find Typo in Obamacare, Try to Kill People With It|Michael Tomasky|July 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There has been an almost Orwellian artfulness in the way need-blind admissions policies are sold.
Did Needs-Blind Admission Create the College Debt Crisis?|John McWhorter|July 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But while another bureaucracy may not be the answer (even the name sounds Orwellian), oversight is clearly needed.
They Want to Know Everything About You|Jake Whitney|March 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Venezuelans are accustomed to their government using Orwellian language.
Is This the End of Hugo Chavez’s Venezuela?|Juan Nagel|February 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
No one called them “attractions” anymore—all that old Orwellian Disneyspeak had been abolished.
Makers|Cory Doctorow

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