Lebensraum

Pronunciation

Alternative forms

• Often spelt with an initial capital, following German grammar in capitalising common nouns.

Origin

A generalised use of Lebensraum.

Full definition of lebensraum

Noun

1. (chiefly with reference to nations and peoples) Hitherto unoccupied “living space” claimed as one’s rightful domain.
• 1949: Annals of the Association of American Geographers, volumes 39–40, page 115 (self-published)Geographers accepted this enlarged meaning of the term and spoke readily of geographical Räume and Lebensräume of peoples, even in cases where no real three-dimensional distribution was implied.
• 2010 (March 24th, 4:00pm): Ben “Yahtzee” Croshaw, “Battlefield: Bad Company 2” reviewed by Zero Punctuation, 2:48–3:05Even when there aren’t any explosions going on, when you’re scanning a distant compound with your sniper rifle, trying to decide which soldier would be the best one to kill first, before every enemy in a two-mile radius deduces your exact position like a vodka-drinking sextant, everything from a certain distance disappears into this weird glowing haze, like the Russians are occupying the surface of Mercury — which is beyond even the most liberal interpretation of lebensraum.

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