Irredentism: meaning, pronunciation and examples
Irredentism noun. A policy of claiming land that belongs to another state because people of one's own nation live there or once did.
How to say it
irr-ih-DEN-tiz-um/ˌɪrɪˈdɛntɪz(ə)m/
5 syllables, stressed on the third (DEN). Forms: irredentist.
Irredentism in a sentence
Old maps on the ministry's walls hinted at an irredentism nobody in power would admit aloud.
Historians trace the border war to decades of irredentism on both sides.
Similar and opposite
Similar:
- expansionism
- territorial claims
- revanchism
Where irredentism comes from
From Italian Italia irredenta, unredeemed Italy, a 19th-century movement claiming Italian-speaking lands.
Test yourself
Which word fills the gap?
Historians trace the border war to decades of _____ on both sides.
- quockerwodger
- irredentism
- nabob
Show the answer
irredentism: Historians trace the border war to decades of irredentism on both sides.