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Definition of gulag

gulag

/ˈɡuːlɑːɡ/
gu · lag
Plural:gulags
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gulag Lexical Profile

gulag Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

The system of forced labor camps established in the Soviet Union during the early twentieth century to detain political dissidents and criminals, or any individual camp within that network.

Example

"Historians have extensively documented the harsh living conditions endured by writers and intellectuals sent to the Soviet gulag."

2

Any repressive detention facility, penal colony, or forced labor camp, especially one used to imprison political opponents.

Example

"Human rights organizations condemned the regime for operating a modern network of secret gulags in remote provinces."

Synonyms
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Antonyms
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• Nearby Words

guitarfish
guitarist
gujranwala
gulag
gulch
gulf
gulf sturgeon

Word Origin & Etymology

Borrowed from Russian 'Gulag', an acronym for 'Glavnoye Upravleniye Lagerey' (Main Administration of Camps), the Soviet government agency created under Joseph Stalin to oversee the penal labor system; the term was popularized internationally by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's 1973 work 'The Gulag Archipelago'.

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Gulag. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/gulag
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