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great white hope. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
great white hope, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
Coined in the early 20th century, first appearing in 1911; during a period when African-American heavyweight champion boxer Jack Johnson seemed unbeatable by a Caucasian boxer. When a promising Caucasian hopeful arrived as a challenger in a championship match, the white race's hopes were attached to said boxer, and they were labelled the "Great White Hope". The term was repopularized in the late-mid 1900s with the appearance of the play and film "The Great White Hope"; and its definition extended beyond boxing and Caucasians.
Noun
great white hope (plural great white hopes)
- A highly skilled white/Caucasian challenger for leadership in a field whose top ranks are dominated by non-Caucasians; especially a field which was once dominated by white Caucasians, and is now dominated by those of black-African descent.
- A person expected to succeed and bring prestige to their native group.
1977 August 20, “7 Arrested in Undercover Raid on P'town Bar”, in Gay Community News, volume 5, number 7, page 1:The arrest of Christo — who three times has run unsuccessfully for selectperson in Provincetown and who has been a leading proponent of the proposal to establish a [gay] community radio station here — caused the biggest stir. Considered once by many to be Provincetown's "liberal great white hope," his political career is now in doubt.
See also