Zionism

[ zahy-uh-niz-uh m ]

/ ˈzaɪ əˌnɪz əm /

noun

a worldwide Jewish movement that resulted in the establishment and development of the state of Israel.

Origin of Zionism

First recorded in 1895–1900; Zion + -ism

Related forms

Zi·on·ist, noun, adjectiveZi·on·is·tic, adjectiveZi·on·ite

[zahy-uh nahyt] /ˈzaɪˌənaɪt/, nounan·ti-Zi·on·ism, noun

an·ti-Zi·on·ist, noun, adjectivenon-Zi·on·ist, noun, adjectivepro-Zi·on·ism, nounpro-Zi·on·ist, noun, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for zionism

As Theodor Herzl, the father of modern Zionism, once said, "If you will it, it is no dream."
Would Pro-Israel Billionaires Adelson and Saban Really Buy the NYT?|Eli Lake|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It opposes global capitalism, European integration and Zionism.
In Hands of Hungarian Artist, Jewish Home Movies of the ’30s a Warning of Coming Holocaust|Daniel Genis|October 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By evening,” Shavit writes, “Zionism has taken the city of Lydda.
The Triumph and Tragedy of Ari Shavit’s My Promised Land|Sol Stern|February 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“Zionism carries out a massacre in the city of Lydda,” Shavit writes.
The Triumph and Tragedy of Ari Shavit’s My Promised Land|Sol Stern|February 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He proposes that Zionism was historically miraculous and he proposes that Zionism was historically culpable.
The Triumph and Tragedy of Ari Shavit’s My Promised Land|Sol Stern|February 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Zionism, Socialism and Anarchism come up in turn, and so many trenchant and vital things are said on these subjects.
Discourses of Keidansky|Bernard G. Richards
This is an allegory referring to certain aspects of Zionism.
Stories and Pictures|Isaac Loeb Peretz
People declare Zionism to be a dream, and deny that its practical realization is possible.
Zionism and Anti-Semitism|Max Simon Nordau
Mr. Pinski is zealous in his interests in literature, drama, socialism, and Zionism.
Contemporary One-Act Plays|Sir James M. Barrie
Zionism, when reduced to its concrete possibilities, can form only one plank in the universal platform of the Jewish nation.
History of the Jews in Russia and Poland, Vol. 3 of 3.|S. M. Dubnow

British Dictionary definitions for zionism

Zionism

/ (ˈzaɪəˌnɪzəm) /

noun

a political movement for the establishment and support of a national homeland for Jews in Palestine, now concerned chiefly with the development of the modern state of Israel

a policy or movement for Jews to return to Palestine from the Diaspora

Derived Forms

Zionist, noun, adjectiveZionistic, adjective

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

Culture definitions for zionism

Zionism

The belief that Jews (see also Jews) should have their own nation; Jewish nationalism. Zionism gained much support among Jews and others in the early twentieth century, and the hoped-for nation was established in the late 1940s in Palestine, as the state of Israel. Zionism is opposed by most Arabs. (See Arab-Israeli conflict.)