mə̇ˈkärthēˌizəm sometimes -rd.ē- noun
( -s )
Usage: usually capitalized M & 2d C
Etymology: Joseph R. McCarthy died 1957 American politician + English -ism
: a political attitude of the mid-twentieth century closely allied to know-nothingism and characterized chiefly by opposition to elements held to be subversive and by the use of tactics involving personal attacks on individuals by means of widely publicized indiscriminate allegations especially on the basis of unsubstantiated charges