gosplan: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
very lowhistorical, academic, political
Quick answer
What does “gosplan” mean?
The State Planning Committee of the Soviet Union, responsible for central economic planning.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
The State Planning Committee of the Soviet Union, responsible for central economic planning.
Any rigid, bureaucratic system of centralized economic planning, often used metaphorically to denote excessive control or red tape.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant differences in meaning or usage, as the term is tied to a specific historical context.
Connotations
Strongly associated with Soviet-style command economies, inefficiency, and top-down control.
Frequency
Extremely rare in everyday language; appears almost exclusively in historical, economic, or political texts.
Grammar
How to Use “gosplan” in a Sentence
Gosplan of [country/era]planned by Gosplanadministered through GosplanVocabulary
Collocations
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Virtually never used in modern business contexts, except in historical analogy for inefficient top-down management.
Academic
Used in historical, economic, and political science texts discussing the Soviet Union or planned economies.
Everyday
Extremely rare; might be used for humorous or critical effect to describe overly bureaucratic situations.
Technical
Appears in specialized literature on economic history, comparative economic systems, or Soviet studies.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “gosplan”
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “gosplan”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “gosplan”
- Misspelling as 'gosplan' (lowercase) when referring to the Soviet committee (should be capitalized).
- Using it to refer to any government plan, which dilutes its specific historical meaning.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is an abbreviation for 'Gosudarstvennyy Planovyy Komitet' (State Planning Committee) in Russian.
No, it is a very low-frequency term, primarily encountered in academic or historical texts.
No, it is exclusively a noun. Using it as a verb (e.g., 'to gosplan') would be non-standard and highly unusual.
It typically carries a negative connotation, associated with the inefficiencies and rigidities of centralized planning.
The State Planning Committee of the Soviet Union, responsible for central economic planning.
Gosplan is usually historical, academic, political in register.
Gosplan: in British English it is pronounced /ˈɡɒsplæn/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˈɡɑːsplæn/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
GOSPLAN: Government Organized Systematic Planning, Like A Bureaucratic Maze.
Conceptual Metaphor
A machine of control; a bureaucratic behemoth.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is the term 'gosplan' most accurately used?