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fifth columnist

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.02 sec.
fifth column
n.
A clandestine subversive organization working within a country to further an invading enemy's military and political aims.

[First applied in 1936 to rebel sympathizers inside Madrid when four columns of rebel troops were attacking that city.]

fifth colum·nism (klm-nzm) n.
fifth columnist n.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.fifth columnist - a member of a clandestine subversive organization who tries to help a potential invader
fifth column, Trojan horse - a subversive group that supports the enemy and engages in espionage or sabotage; an enemy in your midst
traitor, treasonist - someone who betrays his country by committing treason
Translations
fifth columnist nappartenente m/f alla quinta colonna


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A scene in which a sleeping guard allows a Fifth Columnist to escape and others which show the hotel manager attending to the comfort of his guests also illustrate the lack of commitment to a common cause.
In the late spring of 1940 the vicar of Holy Trinity church was arrested in the farming village of Teigh, Rutland, as fear swept the country about pro-Nazi fifth columnists, particularly members of Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists.
SIR Alex Ferguson will be shocked to learn that the worldwide conspiracy of referees, UEFA officials, BBC staff and Stamford Bridge stewards hell-bent on stopping Manchester United winning silverware has been joined by a fifth columnist.
 
 
 
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