brainwashing
American Heritage Dictionary:
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brain·wash·ing
(brān'wŏsh'ĭng, -wô'shĭng) 
n.
n.
- Intensive, forcible indoctrination, usually political or religious, aimed at destroying a person's basic convictions and attitudes and replacing them with an alternative set of fixed beliefs.
- The application of a concentrated means of persuasion, such as an advertising campaign or repeated suggestion, in order to develop a specific belief or motivation.
[Translation of Chinese (Mandarin) xѤ nѡo : xѤ, to wash + nѡo, brain.]
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brainwashing
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
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brainwashing
Systematic effort to destroy an individual's former loyalties and beliefs and to substitute loyalty to a new ideology or power. It has been used by religious cults as well as by radical political groups. The techniques of brainwashing usually involve isolation from former associates and sources of information; an exacting regimen calling for absolute obedience and humility; strong social pressures and rewards for cooperation; physical and psychological punishments for noncooperation, including social ostracism and criticism, deprivation of food, sleep, and social contacts, bondage, and torture; and constant reinforcement. Its effects are sometimes reversed through deprogramming, which combines confrontation and intensive psychotherapy.
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Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: Science:
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brainwashing
Indoctrination that forces people to abandon their beliefs in favor of another set of beliefs. Usually associated with military and political interrogation and religious conversion, brainwashing attempts, through prolonged stress, to break down an individual's physical and mental defenses. Brainwashing techniques range from vocal persuasion and threats to punishment, physical deprivation, mind-altering drugs, and severe physical torture.
Random House Word Menu:
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categories related to 'brainwashing'
- Tools, Techniques, Principles, and Practitioners - brainwashing: extreme psychological conditioning used to change ideological attitudes
Translations:
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Brainwashing
Dansk (Danish)
n. - hjernevask
Nederlands (Dutch)
hersenspoeling
Français (French)
n. - lavage de cerveau, (fig) bourrage de crâne (péj), intox (fam)
Deutsch (German)
n. - Gehirnwäsche
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - πλύση εγκεφάλου
Italiano (Italian)
lavaggio del cervello
Português (Portuguese)
n. - lavagem (f) cerebral
Русский (Russian)
промывание мозгов, идеологическое давление
Español (Spanish)
n. - lavado de cerebro
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - hjärntvätt
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
洗脑
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 洗腦
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) غسل الدماغ
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - שטיפת-מוח
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Copyrights:
American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 1994-2012 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: Science
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Random House Word Menu
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