Manchurian candidate en · NOUN
Etymology
From the title of the 1959 novel or 1962 film The Manchurian Candidate, in which the son of a prominent US political family is brainwashed into being an unwitting assassin for a communist conspiracy. First known generic use in 1970.
Meanings
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A person of influence, especially a politician, who is being manipulated by an enemy power to harm the interests of their own country, possibly without their own full awareness.
The attacks, mainly anonymous e-mails, have woven together various threads […] to portray Obama as the Muslim Manchurian candidate.
2008 February 11, Roger Cohen, “No Manchurian Candidate”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:Get outta my head 'cause I don't need this! Why didn't I see this? I'm a victim Manchurian Candidate I have sinned by just Making my mind up and taking your breath away
1997, “Wait and Bleed”, performed by Slipknot:Most of the conspiracies covered in this book are different. […
2009, Arthur Goldwag, Cults, Conspiracies, and Secret Societies, Vintage Books, →ISBN, pages 108–109:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchurian candidates | Number=Plur | lexicographic |