gerrymander
gerrymander Lexical Profile
gerrymander Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To manipulate the boundaries of an electoral constituency so as to favor one political party, incumbent, or socioeconomic class.
"Critics accused the state legislature of attempting to gerrymander the new voting districts after the decennial census."
• noun
An instance of redrawing the boundaries of an electoral constituency in a way that gives an unfair political advantage to a particular party or group, or a voting district whose boundaries have been manipulated in this manner.
"The court struck down the congressional map, ruling that the sprawling district was an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander."
Word Nuance & Usage
Although the word originates from the surname of Elbridge Gerry (pronounced with a hard 'g' as in 'get'), modern English almost universally pronounces 'gerrymander' with a soft 'g' (/dʒ/, as in 'gem').
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in 1812 as a portmanteau of the surname of Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry and 'salamander', after a newspaper cartoonist illustrated a newly drawn, contorted state senate election district in Essex County as a winged monster resembling a salamander.