iron curtain
/ˌaɪ(ə)ɹn ˈkɜɹ.tən/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.81 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
name
The dividing line between Western Europe and the Soviet-controlled regions, especially during the Cold War (1947–1991).
noun
A barrier made of iron in a theatre, lowered between the stage and the auditorium for fire safety or to prevent communication.
noun
Example Sentences
- "We liked the plain people of Russia wherever we met them. […] We were behind the "iron curtain" at last!"
- "In the east the iron curtain behind which, unseen by the eyes of the world, the work of destruction goes on, is moving steadily forward."
- "An iron curtain is drawn down upon their [Russia's] front. We do not know what is going on behind."
- "From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic an iron curtain has descended across the Continent."
- "Indeed, rail traffic of all kinds is developing through the Iron Curtain – for instance, last year a total of 6,445 wagons controlled by Interfrigo, the international company for refrigerated transport, passed between East and West; […]"
- "Justice is giving ground to the forces of evil. These developments have confused the camp of freedom and abetted the growth of Communism. Even so, the fierce struggle for freedom of the people shut behind the Iron Curtain and the support for their emancipation provided by peace-loving people outside the Iron Curtain have never ceased despite the buffeting from waves of appeasement."
Etymology
A specialized use of iron curtain (“(figurative) impenetrable barrier”), probably partly a calque of German eiserner Vorhang which was used in speeches in the 1940s that were translated into English. The English term appeared in telegrams from the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874–1965) to the United States President Harry S. Truman (1884–1972) in 1945, before being popularized in a speech given by Churchill at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, on March 5, 1946.
Word Breakdown
- Root: *ǵʰer-
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌaɪ(ə)ɹn ˈkɜɹ.tən/
- British English: /ˌaɪən ˈkɜː.tən/
Inflected Forms
the Iron Curtain (canonical)
iron curtains (plural)