Okuzeka
History vocabulary · Revolutions and Political Change

Reform

Meaning in history, with examples

/rɪˈfɔːm/nounCore term

In history, reform means: A planned change to laws, institutions or practices meant to improve them, usually made step by step by those in power rather than through revolution.

In Turkish: reform, ıslahat, yenileşme

How it is used

Governments introduce, carry out, push through or resist reforms. Historians speak of administrative, military, land and educational reforms, reform movements and reformers. In Ottoman history the Tanzimat (1839–1876) is called a reform period.

Example sentences

  1. The Tanzimat reforms reorganised taxation, the army and provincial government.

  2. Reform of the army was the sultan's first priority.

Common collocations

  • introduce reforms
  • the Tanzimat reforms
  • land reform
  • military reform
  • a reform movement
  • revolutionThe sudden, often violent overthrow of a government or political system by its people, or any deep and rapid change in society, the economy or ideas.
  • ReformationThe sixteenth-century religious movement in Western Europe that challenged the authority and practices of the Catholic Church and led to the founding of Protestant churches.
  • regimeA system of government, or the group of people in power in a country for a certain period, often used for governments that are not democratic.
  • monarchyA system of government in which a king, queen, emperor or other hereditary ruler is head of state, or a country governed in this way.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Revolutions and Political Change

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: