Soviet

Origin

From Russian совет ("council"), from Old Russian and Old Church Slavonic съвѣтъ ("advice"). Compounded from со- + Old Church Slavonic вѣтъ ("agreement"), from Proto-Slavic *větъ ("council, talk"). Related words include навет, извет, ответ, привет, обет, вече, отвечать, ответить, завещать, and совещаться. Probably cognate with Polish witać ("to welcome").

Full definition of soviet

Noun

1. A form of governing council in the former Soviet Union.
• 2005, James Meek, The People's Act of Love, Canongate 2006, p. 230:Kratochvil, Jedlicka, Safar, Kubes and Vasata, who always took an interest in politics, set up a soviet in the last wagon and uncoupled it from the rest of the train in the night.
• 2010, Christopher Hitchens, Hitch-22, Atlantic 2011, p. 184:Workers' committees were forming embryo soviets, soldiers' and sailors' collectives had whole ships and regiments under their temporary command, landless workers in the countryside were taking over abandoned farms and properties.
2. The main form of communist government at all levels in the Soviet Union imposed in the Bolshevik October Revolution in the former imperial Russia.

Related terms

• Soviet Republic
• Supreme Soviet

Adjective

1. Pertaining to or resembling a soviet (council).
2. Relating to the ideology, culture or politics of the Soviet Union.
• 1935, Louis Fischer, Soviet Journey, page 129An engineer who is not very soviet in his convictions is the hero.
• 1947, Washington Education Association, Washington Education JournalWhy are separate divisions for teachers and administrators in a state organization any more "soviet" than the same divisions in a city educational ....
• 1991, "Whatchamacallit", in Boston Globe, Aug 27, 1991The Soviet government is not very soviet anymore or, for that matter, much of a government.
• 2004, "M&S coach Rose makes his pitch", in Times Online, Nov 14, 2004"It felt very soviet, very intimidating", said Steven Sharp, one of Rose’s closest lieutenants.
• 2005, Zedong Mao, Stuart Reynolds Schram, Nancy Jane Hodes, Mao's Road to Power: Revolutionary Writings 1912-1949, page 575... that has been enlarged most quickly and widely is the very soviet region newly created in northern Sichuan.
• 2006, Kate Transchel, ''Under the Influence: Working-Class Drinking, Temperance, and Cultural ..., page 136One tactic was to become more "soviet" than vanguard workers by enthusiastically participating in the regime's productivity campaigns such as shock work,
• 2006, SG Inge-Vechtomov, "From the Mutation Theory to the Theory of the Mutation Process", in NATO Security through Science Series BLobashev was of completely proletarian origin. He was a very soviet person.
• 2007, Comment on Fred Hiatt, "A Soviet Memorial -- and Mind-Set: How far Russia has regressed became shockingly evident last week when Vladimir Putin's Russia unleashed a barrage against neighboring Estonia.", Washington Post, May 7, 2007There are 3 kinds of Russian speakers in Estonia: a Those that have taken out Estonian Citizenship, b Those that took out Russian citizenship and are therefore loyal to Russia, c those that have not taken either citizenship and are still very soviet in mindstate.