propaganda

noun

ˌprō-

capitalized : a congregation of the Roman curia having jurisdiction over missionary territories and related institutions

: the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person

: ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one's cause or to damage an opposing cause

also : a public action having such an effect

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The History of Propaganda

Propaganda is today most often used in reference to political statements, but the word comes to our language through its use in a religious context. The Congregatio de propaganda fide (“Congregation for propagating the faith”) was an organization established in 1622 by Pope Gregory XV as a means of furthering Catholic missionary activity. The word propaganda is from the ablative singular feminine of propogandus, which is the gerundive of the Latin propagare, meaning “to propagate.” The first use of the word propaganda (without the rest of the Latin title) in English was in reference to this Catholic organization. It was not until the beginning of the 19th century that it began to be used as a term denoting ideas or information that are of questionable accuracy as a means of advancing a cause.

Examples of propaganda in a Sentence

She didn't buy into the propaganda of her day that women had to be soft and submissive. —

Maria Shriver, Time, 26 Oct. 2009

They see all clear thinking, all sense of reality, and all fineness of living, threatened on every side by propaganda, by advertisement, by film and television. —

C. S. Lewis, An Experiment in Criticism, (1961) 2009

We've so bought into the mass delusion, the nutty propaganda, that now the ideal American family is one that's on steroids … —

Anna Quindlen, Newsweek, 27 Apr. 2009

… just propaganda for a mode of life no one could live without access to the very impulse-suppressing, nostalgia-provoking drugs they don't want you to have … —

Richard Ford, Independence Day, 1995

He was accused of spreading propaganda. The report was nothing but lies and propaganda.

Recent Examples on the Web Astonishingly, the GOP chairmen of the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees have asserted that some of their colleagues have succumbed to Russian propaganda. —

Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024 Read More: What to Know About the Bill That Could Get TikTok Banned in the U.S. But Republican leaders have been especially vocal in speaking out against TikTok recently, arguing that the app is a haven for Chinese propaganda. —

Andrew R. Chow, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024 Many Republicans have adopted Donald Trump’s hostility toward the country, regurgitating Russian propaganda that vilifies and dehumanizes Ukrainian citizens. —

Luke Mogelson, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024 But the science has been entangled with more than a century of nationalist propaganda and genetic evolution. —

Jin Yu Young, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024 Meanwhile, white supremacist propaganda hit a record high last year, according to a new report. —

Will Carless, USA TODAY, 29 Mar. 2024 The Cuban version’s first episode, released Friday, followed a similar script of government propaganda and attacks on opponents, centered around the government’s determination to pin the protests in Santiago de Cuba and a few other cities on U.S. sanctions. —

Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 26 Mar. 2024 It is not intended to be propaganda, or an attempt to persuade anyone of anything. —

Saira Mueller, CNN, 2 Apr. 2024 Mock news sites are targeting Americans with Russian propaganda. —

Steven Lee Myers, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'propaganda.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.