Meanings
- historicaluncountableA period of intense political repression and mass purges in the Soviet Union during the late 1930s, particularly from 1937 to 1938.
... Between the 1929-1930 purge and Yezhovshchina period in 1936-1939, there was a steady rooting out of writers too devoted to national sentiment. The anathema went even beyond this veil of tears, and in Azerbaydzhan the grave of the poet, Narym Narymanov, who had[…]
1956, Kenneth R. Whiting, Soviet Problems of Nationality and Industrial Management, page 18Synonyms: Great Purge, Great Terror
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA period of intense political repression and mass purges in the Soviet Union during the late 1930s, particularly from 1937 to 1938.
Origin
- Russianежовщина
- EnglishYezhovshchina
Borrowed from Russian ежовщина (ježovščina). Named after Russian secret police official Nikolai Yezhov.
More words from Russian
Full word history & related roots →Translations
German Jeschowschtschina
- Jeschowschtschinaperiod of intense political repression and mass purges in the Soviet Union
Polish jeżowszczyzna
- jeżowszczyznaperiod of intense political repression and mass purges in the Soviet Union
Russian ежовщина
- ежовщина (ježovščina)period of intense political repression and mass purges in the Soviet Union
Ukrainian єжовщина
- єжовщина (ježovščyna)period of intense political repression and mass purges in the Soviet Union
Cite this entry
Yezhovshchina. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Yezhovshchina
“Yezhovshchina.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Yezhovshchina. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Yezhovshchina,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Yezhovshchina.
Source: Yezhovshchina on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.