propaganda
Definitions
Information, often biased or misleading, spread to promote a political cause or point of view.
（常带偏见或误导性的）宣传，鼓吹。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedpro- (forward) + pag (plant, spread) + -anda ('things that must be —') = 'things that must be propagated.' It began as the name of a Vatican committee for spreading the faith, then became the loaded political term for one-sided persuasion. Grammatically uncountable: a mass to be sown, not countable items.
Root pag still carries 6 more wordsWhy It Means This
The most surprising twist in the family. Propaganda was once neutral — literally church business about 'propagating' (spreading) belief, like propagating a plant. Its sinister modern sense came from twentieth-century wartime use, when governments mass-produced 'material to be spread' to shape public opinion. The root still explains the meaning: it's an idea deliberately planted to multiply in people's minds.
Common Collocations
- 1.spread propaganda散布宣传
- 2.political propaganda政治宣传
- 3.propaganda campaign宣传运动
- 4.wartime propaganda战时宣传
Example Sentences
- 1.
The regime used state television as a tool of propaganda to silence dissent.
- 2.
Wartime propaganda posters urged citizens to ration food and buy bonds.