Definition of "communism" []

• A theoretical economic system characterized by the collective ownership of property and by the organization of labor for the common advantage of all members. (noun)
• A system of government in which the state plans and controls the economy and a single, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to make progress toward a higher social order in which all goods are equally shared by the people. (noun)
• The Marxist-Leninist version of Communist doctrine that advocates the overthrow of capitalism by the revolution of the proletariat. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The pair, with Engels, continued to agonize over a clear definition of what they meant by the term communism and over a statement of principles—a mission statement—for a communist party."
• "Throwing out the term communism has all the demagoguery of Sen. Joseph McCarthy and recalls a dark chapter in American history."
• "Hess had introduced Marx to the term communism, and now Marx had convinced Hess that the definition of communism had to come out of an understanding of political economy."