UNCLE TOM

I. noun Etymology: ~, pious and faithful black slave in ~'s Cabin (1851-52) by Harriet Beecher Stowe Date: 1922 a black who is overeager to win the approval of whites (as by obsequious behavior or uncritical acceptance of white values and goals), a member of a low-status group who is overly subservient to or cooperative with authority , ~ism noun II. intransitive verb (~med; ~ming) Date: 1947 to behave like an ~