Ku Klux Klan
noun
ˈkü-ˈkləks-ˈklan 
also ˈkyü-,
or ˈklü-
1
: a violent secret fraternal society founded in 1915 in Georgia to maintain white Protestant cultural and political power
also
: any one of more than 20 hate (see hate entry 1 sense 1c) groups that associate themselves with the Ku Klux Klan
2
: a violent post-Civil War secret society founded in Tennessee in 1866 to upend the Black political and social power that was being established during Reconstruction
Note: This Ku Klux Klan had largely dissolved by the end of the 1870s.
Examples of Ku Klux Klan in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Black families were also terrorized by the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan, called the White Legion.
—
Heller McAlpin, Christian Science Monitor, 3 June 2025
When Ku Klux Klan members murdered James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner, America saw two Jews and one Black man die together for the right to vote.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 24 May 2025
Vietnamese Americans faced severe discrimination as refugees following the Vietnam War, experiencing economic marginalization, language barriers, and violent anti-refugee hostility, exemplified by Ku Klux Klan attacks on Gulf Coast Vietnamese fishermen.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 17 May 2025
Malcolm was not yet born (his mother was pregnant with him at the time), but this violent act would propel his family across a succession of towns in the Midwest where his parents, followers of the Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey, continued to be hounded by the Ku Klux Klan.
—Lizzie Skurnick, New York Times, 16 May 2025
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Heller McAlpin, Christian Science Monitor, 3 June 2025
When Ku Klux Klan members murdered James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner, America saw two Jews and one Black man die together for the right to vote.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 24 May 2025
Vietnamese Americans faced severe discrimination as refugees following the Vietnam War, experiencing economic marginalization, language barriers, and violent anti-refugee hostility, exemplified by Ku Klux Klan attacks on Gulf Coast Vietnamese fishermen.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 17 May 2025
Malcolm was not yet born (his mother was pregnant with him at the time), but this violent act would propel his family across a succession of towns in the Midwest where his parents, followers of the Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey, continued to be hounded by the Ku Klux Klan.
—Lizzie Skurnick, New York Times, 16 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for Ku Klux Klan
Cite this Entry
“Ku Klux Klan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Ku%20Klux%20Klan. Accessed 7 Jun. 2025.
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