American party
See under (def 3).
an ignorant or totally uninformed person; ignoramus.
an .
(initial capital letters) U.S. History. a member of a political party (American party or Know-Nothing party) prominent from 1853 to 1856, whose aim was to keep control of the government in the hands of native-born citizens: so called because members originally professed ignorance of the party’s activities.
a person whose anti-intellectualism, xenophobia, and other political attitudes recall the Know-Nothings.
grossly ignorant; totally uninformed.
.
(initial capital letters) of or relating to the Know-Nothings.
of or relating to a political know-nothing.
Contemporary Examples
By 1852 they were a full-fledged political party, known as the American party.
The Next Wingnut Attack John Avlon October 6, 2009
Historical Examples
While “reformism” only became a practical issue in the American party in 1910, it had its beginnings much earlier.
Socialism As It Is William English Walling
About this time the most striking and sinister figure in American party history loomed into greatness.
Charles Sumner Centenary Archibald H. Grimke
noun
(informal, derogatory) an ignorant person
n.
“ignoramus,” 1827, from know + nothing. As a U.S. nativist political party, active 1853-56, the name refers to the secret society at the core of the party, about which members were instructed to answer, if asked about it, that they “know nothing.” The party eventually merged into the Republican Party.
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