Meanings
nounsadopopulism (uncountable)
- uncountablegovernmentA political strategy or act in which a leader appeals to people by harming them but convincing them that people they hate are at fault or suffering worse harm.
[…] 'sadopopulism', in which people are willing to inflict pain on themselves so long as they can believe that, in the same moment, they are making their enemies hurt more: […]'
2019 November 5, Fintan O'Toole, The Politics of Pain: Postwar England and the Rise of Nationalism, Liveright Publishing, →ISBN
Origin
From sado- + populism, coined by historian Timothy Snyder, then influenced by earlier terms and concepts like "political sadism".
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
sadopopulism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sadopopulism
MLA
“sadopopulism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sadopopulism. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sadopopulism,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sadopopulism.
Source: sadopopulism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.