Dictionary

wokeism en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈwəʊkɪzəm/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈwoʊkɪzəm/ (Canada, General-American)
• wōʹkĭzəm

Etymology

From woke + -ism.

Meanings

1. (derogatory, uncountable) The purported ideology of wokeness.
   • For my part, I have no problem with sports woke-ism. I never thought taking a knee was the most provocative social-justice statement. But I’m also a die-hard football fan who will sit through almost anything to watch Patrick Mahomes perform his magic. 2020 December 26, Charles Gasparino, “NFL drops the ball as TV ratings take hit over ‘woke-ism’”, in New York Post:
   • Ansari demonstrates how wokeism is both self-serving and self-perpetuating by simply acting as a vehicle for the privileged to “outwoke” each other while really doing nothing at all to change the reality which creates various forms of social inequality. 2019 July 30, Julian Vigo, “The Malaise Of Peak Wokeism Within Online Culture”, in Forbes:
2. (countable, derogatory) A woke word or expression.
   • Whereas companies once used the term "civil rights movement" when discussing issues of social justice, their language shifted in 2015 and became dominated by "wokeisms" such as "allyship" "diversity equity," "equity and inclusion," and "racial justice." 2024, Helen Pluckrose, The Counterweight Handbook:
   • Many of them are leaving us — the words. Gone into hiding […] Now they lurk, uncaged, behind other words, behind trending, brittle, bloodless little wokeisms […] 2024, Bruce Wagner, The Met Gala & Tales of Saints and Seekers:

Forms

Descendants

wokisme · wokisme · wokismo · wokismo · wokisme

Relateds

wokeish · wokeist · woker · wokeness · wokedom

Translations (18)

pt wokismo (the purported ideology of wokeness) · nl wokisme (the purported ideology of wokeness) · gl wokismo (the purported ideology of wokeness) · ca wokisme (the purported ideology of wokeness) · br wokerezh (the purported ideology of wokeness) · tr wokeçuluk (the purported ideology of wokeness) · fr wokisme (the purported ideology of wokeness) · de Wokismus (the purported ideology of wokeness) · it wokismo (the purported ideology of wokeness) · pt lacração (the purported ideology of wokeness) · ka ვოუქიზმი (the purported ideology of wokeness) · lv atjēdzība (the purported ideology of wokeness) · es wokismo (the purported ideology of wokeness) · yi וואָקיזם (the purported ideology of wokeness) · ja 覚醒主義 (the purported ideology of wokeness) · ja ウォキズム (the purported ideology of wokeness) · ar ووكية (the purported ideology of wokeness) · sc wokismu (the purported ideology of wokeness)