expansionism

noun

ex·​pan·​sion·​ism ik-ˈspan(t)-shə-ˌni-zəm 

: a policy or practice of expansion and especially of territorial expansion by a nation

expansionist

ik-ˈspan(t)-sh(ə-)nist 

noun

expansionist adjective

or less commonly expansionistic

ik-ˌspan(t)-shə-ˈni-stik 

Examples of expansionism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

What kind of people back a government that feeds an ally into the maw of Russian authoritarian expansionism and then blames the victim for it? —Matt Robison, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025

The most uncertain zone of Israeli expansionism is in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. —Mick Krever, CNN Money, 31 Mar. 2025

Even so, his newfound taste for territorial expansionism is unparalleled in the modern era. —Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 7 Feb. 2025

In Russia, the autocratic leader Vladimir Putin has embraced an ideology of nationalist imperialism, consolidating economic resources through state expansionism; Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has corroded the global norm against territorial conquest. —Michael Brenes, Foreign Affairs, 28 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for expansionism

• activism
• ageism
• albinism
• altruism
• aneurism
• animism
• aphorism
• atomism
• barbarism
• bolshevism
• botulism
• brahmanism