BharatNotes Boycott
verb (transitive); nounUsage in a UPSC answer
When diplomatic remonstrance fails, states may choose to boycott a regime's exports, signalling moral disapproval while testing whether economic pressure can succeed where persuasion could not.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
boycott (n/v), boycotted (adj/v past), boycotting (v pres.p), boycotter (n), boycottable (adj)
Root
Eponym: Captain Charles C. Boycott (1832–1897), Irish land agent ostracised 1880; surname became common word within months
Etymology
Eponymously from Captain Charles C. Boycott (1832-1897), a land agent in County Mayo, Ireland, who was ostracised by the Irish Land League in 1880 when he refused to lower rents for tenant farmers; his name became a byword for the tactic within months.
Memory Hook
Picture a "boy" who is told to "cot" (cut off) from the group: a BOY-COT-t is everyone agreeing to cut someone off, just as villagers cut off Captain Boycott in 1880.
How This Word Works in UPSC Writing
An organised refusal to deal with a person, institution or country as a means of pressure. In GS1 it belongs to the Swadeshi phase of the national movement, where boycott of foreign goods was paired with the promotion of indigenous production, so the two halves formed a single strategy rather than separate tactics. That pairing is the point: boycott alone withdraws participation, while Swadeshi supplied the constructive alternative.
Don’t Confuse It With
Boycott is organised refusal to deal, applied as pressure. Swadeshi is the positive counterpart, promoting indigenous goods. Non-cooperation is the broader withdrawal of participation from institutions of rule. Ostracism is social exclusion by a community rather than an organised political tactic.
Hindi Meaning
बहिष्कार (bahishkār); स्वदेशी is its constructive counterpart.
Common Questions
- What is a boycott?
- An organised refusal to deal with a person, organisation or country, used as a means of applying pressure.
- How did boycott relate to Swadeshi?
- They formed one strategy: boycott withdrew custom from foreign goods while Swadeshi promoted indigenous production as the constructive alternative.
Seen in UPSC Question Papers
- Prelims 2025 — Modern India
- Prelims 2016 — Modern India
- Prelims 2010 — Modern India
- Mains 2015 · GS4 · 25 marks — Gender Ethics / Child Rights / Social Reform
Real UPSC previous-year questions whose text uses “Boycott” — proof this word earns its place on your list.
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