Vietcong

Or Vi·et Cong

[vee-et-kong, -kawng, vyet-, vee-it-]

noun

plural

Vietcong 

1. a Communist-led army and guerrilla force in South Vietnam that fought its government and was supported by North Vietnam.

2. a member or supporter of this force.

adjective

1. of or relating to this force or one of its members or supporters.

Vietcong

/ ˌvjɛtˈkɒŋ /

noun

1. the Communist-led guerrilla force and revolutionary army of South Vietnam; the armed forces of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam

2. a member of these armed forces

3. (modifier) of or relating to the Vietcong or a Vietcong

Word History and Origins

Origin of Vietcong¹

First recorded in 1960–65, Vietcong is from the Vietnamese word Việt-cộng

Word History and Origins

Origin of Vietcong¹

from Vietnamese Viet Nam Cong San Vietnamese Communist

Example Sentences

In a document that remained classified too long, the National Security Council staff reported on March 22, 1969, that “all agencies agree” that South Vietnam could not, “either now or even when fully modernized,” withstand the North Vietnamese army and the Vietcong “without U.S. combat support in the form of air, helicopters, artillery, logistics and major ground forces.”

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After strafing the Vietcong and diverting them with his craft’s landing lights, he ignored an order to return to base and gambled on a maneuver that the military said had never been tried before with a two-person Cobra, which has seats only for the pilot and co-pilot.

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The mountainous region in the Central Highlands was populated by Montagnard villagers, whom Army advisers — and before them, C.I.A. officers — tried to shape into a bulwark against the Vietcong, the Communist insurgency aligned with North Vietnam.

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In the early hours of July 6, 1964, a force of 800 to 900 Vietcong and North Vietnamese regulars launched a surprise attack, seeking to overrun the camp.

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Eight years later, the North Vietnamese Army and the communist Vietcong forces launched the Tet Offensive, attacking more than 100 cities, with Saigon as the centerpiece.

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