tokenism

UK: /ˈtəʊkənɪzəm/ US: /ˈtoʊkəˌnɪzəm/ ,(tō′kə niz′əm)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

to•ken•ism /ˈtoʊkəˌnɪzəm/   n. [uncountable]

1. the policy of making only a slight effort to offer equal opportunities to minorities.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

to•ken•ism  (tō′kə niz′əm), n. 

1. the practice or policy of making no more than a token effort or gesture, as in offering opportunities to minorities equal to those of the majority.
2. any legislation, admissions policy, hiring practice, etc., that demonstrates only minimal compliance with rules, laws, or public pressure:
   Admitting one woman to the men's club was merely tokenism.

• token + -ism 1960–65

to′ken•is′tic, adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

tokenism / ˈtəʊkəˌnɪzəm/ noun

1. the practice of making only a token effort or doing no more than the minimum, esp in order to comply with a law

ˌtokenˈistic adjective