Carry Nation

1 9.4

An American woman who raids bars and smashes bottles of alcohol with a hatchet

proper noun
/ˈkæri ˈneɪʃən/

: Carry Nation

One of the most famous figures in the temperance movement was Carry Nation.

Examples

Many temperance supporters idolized Carry Nation for her uncompromising stance against alcohol.
Carry Nation became famous for her bold attacks on illegal saloons during the temperance movement.
The image of Carry Nation wielding a hatchet became a symbol of the prohibition era.
In the early 1900s, Carry Nation became known for her radical protests against alcohol.
Many temperance supporters idolized Carry Nation for her uncompromising stance against alcohol.
The image of Carry Nation wielding a hatchet became a symbol of the prohibition era.
Carry Nation became famous for her bold attacks on illegal saloons during the temperance movement.

Synonyms

Carrie Nation

vsCarry Nation

1 9.5

An American activist who fought against alcohol and attacked bars with a hatchet

has identical historical identity but uses an alternate spelling of the name

Surface Forms

Carry Nation main

Morphology

Carry + Nation

This is a proper name referring to a historical person, so the meaning is not compositionally built from the constituent words 'carry' and 'nation'. A B1 learner who knows the literal words would not be able to infer that it names a US prohibitionist; personal names are arbitrary and language-specific, making the expression unpredictable without prior exposure.

Etymology

Carry Nation is the name of an American woman who became famous for walking into bars and smashing bottles with a hatchet to fight alcohol. That strong image made her a symbol of the 'temperance movement', which is why people still remember her name today.