yellow peril

noun

variants often Yellow Peril

1

dated, offensive : a danger to Western civilization held to arise from expansion of the power and influence of eastern Asian peoples

2

dated, offensive : a threat to Western living standards from the influx of eastern Asian laborers willing to work for very low wages

Examples of yellow peril in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The attacks over the last two years did not happen in a vacuum, but reflect the endurance of yellow peril, which physiologically and ideologically desensitizes, dehumanizes, and weaponizes Asians and Asian Americans. — ELLE, 17 Mar. 2022

Hardy responded by joking nihilistically about the rise of China in language tinged with yellow peril metaphors. — Rebecca Davis, Variety, 30 Nov. 2021

The superhero has been plagued by tropes that society still imposes on Asian Americans both in real life and in fiction — yellow peril, kung fu master, etc. — Washington Post, 3 Sep. 2021

Yet viral surveillance footage, bystander videos, local reporting, and anti-Asian hate incident reports continue to document an alarming return of yellow peril to the United States. — Sarah Wang, Harper's BAZAAR, 28 June 2021

Experiencing that difference, glimpsing a bit of that yellow peril, has been insightful and painful. — Beth Nguyen, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2021

There were newspaper reports; there were radio talk shows that talked about the yellow peril and the menace. — Cassa Niedringhaus, The Denver Post, 27 June 2019

Word History

First Known Use

1895, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for yellow peril

• tocopherol
• beryl
• feral
• karel
• seral
• sterile
• sterol
• carbaryl
• glyceryl
• imperil
• foraminiferal