Standard Lemma guide

McCarthyism

name · noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /məˈkɑː.θi.ɪzəm/
  • General-American: /məˈkɑɹ.θi.ɪzəm/
  • CMU ARPABET: M AH0 K AA1 R TH IY0 IH0 Z AH0 M Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

name

Meaning 1

The intense opposition to, and fear and suspicion of, Communism, particularly in the United States during the 1950s.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: anticommunism

2

noun

Meaning 2

The mass pressure, harassment, and/or blacklisting used to pressure people to follow popular political beliefs, especially as opposed to communism.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: derogatory, uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

unscrupulously accusing people of disloyalty (as by saying they were Communists)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: witch-hunt

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Irish Mac Carthaighbor. English McCarthy Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ισμός (-ismós)der. English -ism English McCarthyism From McCarthy + -ism, named after United States Senator Joseph McCarthy. Originates from a 1950 Washington Post political cartoon by Herbert Block.

Across languages

Translations

24 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Belarusian: макарці́зм (makarcízm) — intense opposition to Communism
  • Catalan: maccarthisme — intense opposition to Communism
  • Chinese Mandarin: 麥卡錫主義 /麦卡锡主义 (Màikǎxīzhǔyì) — intense opposition to Communism
  • Finnish: mccarthyismi — intense opposition to Communism
  • French: maccarthysme — intense opposition to Communism
  • Georgian: მაკარტიზმი (maḳarṭizmi) — intense opposition to Communism
  • German: McCarthyismus — intense opposition to Communism
  • Greek: μακαρθισμός (makarthismós) — intense opposition to Communism
  • Italian: maccartismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Japanese: マッカーシズム (makkāshizumu) — intense opposition to Communism
  • Polish: maccartyzm — intense opposition to Communism
  • Portuguese: macartismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Portuguese: macarthismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Russian: маккарти́зм (makkartízm) — intense opposition to Communism
  • Spanish: macartismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Spanish: macarthismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Spanish: maccarthismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Spanish: mccarthismo — intense opposition to Communism
  • Vietnamese: chủ nghĩa McCarthy — intense opposition to Communism
  • Catalan: cacera de bruixes — mass pressure
  • Chinese Mandarin: 麥卡錫主義 /麦卡锡主义 (Màikǎxīzhǔyì) — mass pressure
  • German: Blockwartmentalität — mass pressure
  • Greek: μακαρθισμός (makarthismós) — mass pressure
  • Polish: maccartyzm — mass pressure