psyop

noun

psy·​op ˈsī-ˌäp 

variants or PSYOP or less commonly psy-op or PsyOp

plural psyops or PSYOPs also psy-ops or PsyOps

1

: a military operation usually aimed at influencing the enemy's state of mind through noncombative means (such as distribution of leaflets)

Psyops use a wide array of communications media—including radio and TV broadcasts, loudspeakers, newspapers, magazines, leaflets and even comic books—to help win or prevent wars.

—Harold Kennedy

A PSYOP is a form of military operation that targets the emotional and mental state of the enemy.

—Mitzi Perdue

"My job in psy-ops is to play with people's heads, to get the enemy to behave the way we want them to behave," says Lt. Colonel Michael Holmes …

—Michael Hastings

a CIA psyops/psyop campaign

2

: someone or something used by the government to influence the population's opinions and attitudes

… some hard-line conservatives have raised conspiracy theories … that [singer-songwriter Taylor] Swift is a government psyop planted by the Pentagon to aid Democrats …

—Rachel Schilke

Examples of psyop in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Are people not paying attention to the psyop here? —Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

psychological operation

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for psyop

• atop
• backdrop
• backstop
• bebop
• blacktop
• bookshop
• clatsop
• desktop
• eavesdrop
• estop
• hardtop
• hilltop