Definition of "iron curtain" []

• The military, political, and ideological barrier established between the Soviet bloc and western Europe from 1945 to 1990. (noun)
• A barrier that prevents free exchange of ideas and information: "That department and the editorial department are separated by an almost impenetrable iron curtain” ( Brendan Gill). (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.