indoctrinate

verb

in·​doc·​tri·​nate in-ˈdäk-trə-ˌnāt 

indoctrinated; indoctrinating

transitive verb

1

disapproving : to imbue with a usually partisan or sectarian opinion, point of view, or principle

… a dictator who has spent 40 years indoctrinating his people.

—Jonathan Alter

2

: to instruct especially in fundamentals or rudiments : teach

New instructors are … indoctrinated with technical information …

—Ken Castle

indoctrination

(ˌ)in-ˌdäk-trə-ˈnā-shən 

noun

indoctrinator

in-ˈdäk-trə-ˌnā-tər 

noun

Did you know?

Indoctrinate means "brainwash" to many people, but its meaning isn't always so negative. When the verb first appeared in English in the 17th century, it simply meant "to teach"—a meaning linked closely to its source, the Latin verb docēre, which also means "to teach." (Other offspring of docēre include docile, doctor, document, and, of course, doctrine). By the 19th century, indoctrinate was being used in the sense of teaching someone to fully accept only the ideas, opinions, and beliefs of a particular group.

Synonyms of indoctrinate

• teach
• educate

Examples of indoctrinate in a Sentence

The goal should be to teach politics, rather than to indoctrinate students in a narrow set of political beliefs.

indoctrinated children in proper safety procedures

Recent Examples on the Web

Russia is accused of taking thousands of Ukrainian children into Russia during the war, separating them from their families and indoctrinating them with Russian nationalism as part of its effort to erase the sovereignty and national culture of Ukraine. —Shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Oct. 2025

Some of the new parental rights policies, born out of anger over claims that districts are trying to indoctrinate children, actually duplicate processes that already existed. —Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 13 Oct. 2025

For years, conservative groups and influencers have accused professors and administrators of using their positions to indoctrinate students with progressive ideology. —Tyler Kingkade, NBC news, 18 Sep. 2025

Mona Awad’s Southern California-gothic novel follows a young woman getting indoctrinated into a supernatural skincare cult. —Literary Hub, 25 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

probably from Middle English endoctrinen, from Anglo-French endoctriner, from en- + doctrine doctrine

First Known Use

1621, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for indoctrinate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

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Kids Definition

indoctrinate

verb

in·​doc·​tri·​nate in-ˈdäk-trə-ˌnāt 

indoctrinated; indoctrinating

1

: instruct sense 1, teach

2

: to teach the ideas, opinions, or beliefs of a particular group

indoctrination

(ˌ)in-ˌdäk-trə-ˈnā-shən 

noun

indoctrinator

in-ˈdäk-trə-ˌnāt-ər 

noun