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DictionaryRoot: grom
Russian

grom

thunder, roar

1 / 1
A coordinated mob attacks a Jewish synagogue and its congregants in the Russian Empire around 1900: a leader directs two club-wielding attackers while an elderly Jewish couple recoils at the damaged entrance.
noun

pogrom

POH-grum/ˈpəʊɡrəm/

An organized violent attack on an ethnic or religious group.

Etymology
poRussianby, through
+gromRussianthunder, roar

The root meaning “thunder, roar” underlies a Russian word for “devastation, destruction.” In English, this became a term for organized massacres targeting a particular people, especially Jews.

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