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History vocabulary · Empires, States and Rulers

Imperialism

Meaning in history, with examples

/ɪmˈpɪəriəlɪzəm/nounCore term

In history, imperialism means: The policy or practice of a state extending its power over other territories and peoples, through conquest, colonies or economic and political influence.

In Turkish: emperyalizm

How it is used

Historians use new imperialism for the rapid European expansion of about 1870 to 1914, including the Scramble for Africa. Informal imperialism means control through trade, loans and treaties without direct rule. The adjective is imperialist.

Example sentences

  1. The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 is often linked with the high point of European imperialism.

  2. Historians debate whether trade or politics was the main force behind imperialism.

Common collocations

  • European imperialism
  • new imperialism
  • cultural imperialism
  • informal imperialism
  • the age of imperialism
  • colonialismThe policy or practice of a state taking control of other territories and peoples, settling or ruling them, and using their land and resources for its own benefit.
  • empireA large state or group of territories and peoples ruled by a single supreme authority, often an emperor or sultan, and usually built through conquest.
  • colonyA territory ruled by another, usually distant, state, or a settlement founded by people from another country who stay under its control.
  • decolonizationThe process by which colonies became independent states, especially in Asia and Africa in the decades after the Second World War.

More terms: Empires, States and Rulers

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