perestrojka

perestroika

noun peh-reh-STROI-kah Rare

Origin: From Russian perestrojka (restructuring), from pere- (re-) + strojka (construction).

Usage Note

Perestrojka entered Italian (and world languages) as the name for Mikhail Gorbachev's late-1980s Soviet reform policy of economic and political restructuring. In Italian it is invariable and used as a historical proper noun or as a metaphor for sweeping institutional reform. It is feminine by convention (la perestrojka).

Examples

"La perestrojka cambiò il corso della storia."

Natural Translation

Perestroika changed the course of history.

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