jackboot

[ jak-boot ]

noun

1. a sturdy leather boot reaching up over the knee, worn especially by soldiers.
2. Also called jackboot tactics. brutally bullying, militaristic, or authoritarian measures.
3. a person who uses such measures.

jackboot

/ ˈdʒækˌbuːt /

noun

1. an all-leather military boot, extending up to or above the knee
2. 1. arbitrary, cruel, and authoritarian rule or behaviour
   2. ( as modifier )

      jackboot tactics

Derived Forms

• ˈjackˌbooted, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of jackboot¹

First recorded in 1680–90; jack ¹ + boot ¹

Example Sentences

A disproportionate number not only did not even passively resist but showed themselves eager to lick the polish off Hitler’s jackboots, if necessary.

From Salon

Sorry, MAGA, but if the jackboot fits, wear it: he is an authoritarian, a statist, a racist, an aspiring fascist, a hateful, mendacious, corrupt traitor, a fool, mentally ill, and frankly evil.

From Salon

The comedian George Carlin said that it would come not “with jackboots” but “Nike sneakers and smiley shirts.”

From New York Times

Letting defeat creep in when I see all of us getting stomped on by tech-enabled jackboots in an unregulated corporate panopticon.

From Salon

I understood how growing up under the jackboot of Jim Crow might lead him to the philosophy of Black self-sufficiency articulated by Malcolm X, which Thomas espoused in his youth.

From Washington Post