correctthink

Etymology

Compound of correct + think, modeled on goodthink from George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four.

correctthink means synonym of goodthink. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 95 out of 100.

Why “correctthink” is a great word

CORRECTTHINK — [Noun] A term for orthodox or officially approved thought, especially in a political or ideological context. Its etymology is a compound of 'correct' (meaning right, true, or proper) and 'think' (meaning thought or opinion), modeled on 'goodthink' from George Orwell's 1949 novel *Nineteen Eighty-Four*. Unlike 'goodthink' (a fictional, state-mandated creed) or 'wrongthink' (its stark, deviant opposite), correctthink is the vernacular for a more ambient, self-policing conformity. It is the silent, preemptive editing of a risky idea before it reaches the tongue, the hollow, harmonious echo of a committee’s conclusion, and the quiet abandonment of a question whose asking has become a transgression—the unforced capitulation of the mind to the prevailing weather.

noun

Synonym of goodthink.“Unfortunately, the Associate Provosts for DEI are not (yet) authorized to fire people outside academia. But perhaps, if SCBWI and the knitting and bird-watching organizations keep up the fight, the general public will gradually learn never to say anything on any subject without including the approved formulas of correctthink.”