Zionism

American  

[zahy-uh-niz-uhm] / ˈzaɪ əˌnɪz əm /

noun

1. a worldwide Jewish movement that resulted in the establishment and development of the state of Israel and that now supports the state of Israel as a Jewish homeland.

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Zionism British  

/ ˈzaɪəˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. 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

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

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Zionism Cultural  

1. 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.)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• anti-Zionist
  noun
• anti-Zionism
  noun
• Zionite
  noun
• pro-Zionism
  noun
• non-Zionist
  noun
• Zionistic
  adjective
• Zionist
  noun
• pro-Zionist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of Zionism

First recorded in 1895–1900; Zion + -ism

Example Sentences

Ideologies also flourished, including socialism, communism, Zionism and, among a growing number of non-Jewish townspeople, Nazism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 16, 2026

The CST said: "Both of these cases illustrate how sentiment and rhetoric towards Israel and Zionism influence, shape and drive contemporary anti-Jewish discourse, online and offline, often around totemic events that grab mainstream public attention."

From BBC • Aug. 6, 2025

She read the founding documents of Zionism and devoured books like Rashid Khalidi’s The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.

From Slate • Oct. 21, 2024

But to many other Jews, Zionism — the belief in a Jewish state in the ancestral Jewish homeland — is a key part of Jewish identity.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 29, 2024

Did I remember his father’s explosion over Zionism? he wanted to know.

From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok