Table of Contents
Definition of State-sponsored Terrorism
(noun) An act of terrorism by a State against its own people or to aid in international terrorism.
Examples of State-sponsored Terrorism
- Jewish extermination in Nazi Germany
- Rwandan genocide
State-sponsored Terrorism Pronunciation
Syllabification: state spon·sor·ed ter·ror·ism
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /stAYt-spAHn-suhrd tAIR-uhr-riz-uhm/
- British English – /stayt-spOn-suhd tE-ruh-ri-zuhm/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /steɪt-ˈspɑnsərd ˈtɛrəˌrɪzəm/
- British English – /steɪt-ˈspɒnsəd ˈtɛrərɪzm/
Usage Notes
- Plural: state-sponsored terrorisms
- The term “State” does not have to be capitalized, but typically is in legal documents and is capitalized here for differentiation.
- Variant spelling: state sponsored terrorism
- A (noun) state-sponsored terrorist commits (adjective) state-sponsored terroristic acts (adverb) state-sponsored terroristically to create a (noun) state-sponsored terror.
Additional Information
- Terrorism Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “state” and “sponsor” and “terrorism” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
Related Terms
- bioterrorism
- chemical terrorism
- dictatorship
- domestic terrorism
- ecoterrorism
- genocide
- globalization
- government
- international terrorism
- state
- state autonomy
Cite the Definition of State-sponsored Terrorism
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “State-sponsored terrorism.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved December 14, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/state-sponsored-terrorism/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
State-sponsored terrorism. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/state-sponsored-terrorism/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “State-sponsored terrorism.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed December 14, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/state-sponsored-terrorism/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“State-sponsored terrorism.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 14 Dec. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/state-sponsored-terrorism/>.