manifesto

1 of 2

noun

man·​i·​fes·​to ˌma-nə-ˈfe-(ˌ)stō 

plural manifestos or manifestoes

: a written statement declaring publicly the intentions, motives, or views of its issuer

The group's manifesto focused on helping the poor and stopping violence.

manifesto

2 of 2

verb

manifestoed; manifestoing; manifestos

intransitive verb

: to issue a manifesto

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Manifesto Has Latin Roots

Manifesto is related to manifest, which occurs in English as a noun, verb, and adjective. Of these, the adjective, which means "readily perceived by the senses," is oldest, dating to the 14th century. Both manifest and manifesto derive ultimately from the Latin noun manus ("hand") and -festus, a combining form of uncertain meaning that is also found in the Latin adjective infestus ("hostile"), an ancestor of the English infest. Something that is manifest is easy to perceive or recognize, and a manifesto is a statement in which someone makes his or her intentions or views easy for people to ascertain. Perhaps the most well-known statement of this sort is the Communist Manifesto, written in 1848 by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels to outline the platform of the Communist League.

Examples of manifesto in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In the years of the French Revolution and during the Italian Risorgimento, the itinerants carried in their baskets—hidden below the books—various leaflets and manifestos of secret societies conspiring against the ancien régime. — Literary Hub, 22 July 2026

The movement’s website features a manifesto detailing five demands. — Connor Greene, Time, 22 July 2026

And this was very much part of the election program and the manifesto. — Tax Notes Staff, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026

The devil will be in the details, after Labour’s deputy party leader Lucy Powell told the BBC that Burnham would not overturn a manifesto pledge to end new exploration licences. — Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 20 July 2026

Angermayer’s manifesto had credited transgender activism with inspiring Enhanced. — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 13 July 2026

Her rebuke comes as Caribbean leaders meet under the Caricom bloc and launch a new slavery reparations manifesto, pressing Britain for apologies, debt cancellation and other measures long resisted in London. — Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026

Mamdani initially said that sounded like communism with told about the centrist manifesto delivered by some lawmakers after two democratic socialist candidates backed by Mamdani won election to the House from New York. — The Hill Staff, The Hill, 28 June 2026

Signed by renowned scientists at the time, the manifesto called on world leaders to heed the dangers of nuclear weapons and find peaceful resolutions to international conflicts. — USA Today, 24 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Italian, denunciation, manifest, from manifestare to manifest, from Latin, from manifestus

First Known Use

Noun

1620, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1748, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for manifesto

• adagio
• altiplano
• arapaho
• arapahoe
• fortissimo
• minangkabau
• oregano
• ostinato
• pistachio
• politico
• portfolio
• presidio

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Kids Definition

manifesto

noun

man·​i·​fes·​to

ˌman-ə-ˈfes-tō

plural manifestos or manifestoes

: a public declaration of intentions or views