anti-Semitism

noun

an·​ti-Sem·​i·​tism
ˌan-tē-ˈse-mə-ˌti-zəm,
ˌan-ˌtī- How to pronounce anti-Semitism (audio)
variants or less commonly antisemitism
: hostility toward or discrimination against Jews as a religious, ethnic, or racial group

Examples of anti-Semitism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The issue of Israel is particularly sensitive, because Labour was until very recently embroiled in an anti-Semitism scandal under previous leader Jeremy Corbyn. Luke McGee, CNN, 1 Mar. 2024 Roth touched on Gaza, describing in graphic detail the attacks on Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7 and the rise in anti-Semitism worldwide in the wake of the conflict. Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Feb. 2024 The decision came after accusations of plagiarism in her academic work, and a grilling by congressional lawmakers last month over her response to anti-Semitism on her campus since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 3 Jan. 2024 In December, Republican Representative Elise Stefanik grilled Claudine Gay, the then-president of Harvard University, about anti-Semitism on campus. Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2024 Gay, the school’s first Black president—and, for some critics, an avatar of the identity-politics bureaucracy on college campuses—had just flubbed testimony before Congress about anti-Semitism on campus. Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 4 Jan. 2024 When Gay resigned as Harvard’s president in what started as a dispute over handling anti-Semitism on campus and included plagiarism charges, DEI was the collateral damage. Peter Vanham, Fortune, 11 Jan. 2024 By the Thirties, European countries were increasingly roiled by class conflict and anti-Semitism, and after the Nazis came to power in Germany, more and more Labor Zionists began, after all, to focus on refuge—on the pathos of assimilation, and on Palestine as a safe haven. Jordan Castro, Harper's Magazine, 9 Jan. 2024 Gay received intense criticism last month for her answers to lawmakers over anti-Semitism on campus following the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel. Steve Mollman, Fortune, 4 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'anti-Semitism.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1880, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of anti-Semitism was in 1880

Dictionary Entries Near anti-Semitism

Cite this Entry

“Anti-Semitism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/anti-Semitism. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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