Shoah

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈʃəʊ.É™/
• US IPA: /ˈʃoÊŠ.É™/

Origin

From the Hebrew word שואה ("catastrophe").

Full definition of Shoah

Proper noun

1. The systematic mass murder of 6 million Jews perpetrated by Nazi Germany shortly before and during World War II.
• 1999, Neal Stephenson, Cryptonomicon:I never knew him, or any of my other relatives who died in the Shoah. But I would gladly dump every ounce of that gold into the ocean, just to give them a decent burial.

Usage notes

The term "Holocaust" may be synonymous with "Shoah" or may denote something broader; see the usage note at Holocaust.