banana republic

== English == === Etymology === Coined by American author O. Henry in 1901 in his short story Money Maze, set in the fictional "Anchuria", which was based on his 1896–97 stay in Honduras. === Pronunciation === === Noun === banana republic (plural banana republics) (politics, idiomatic, derogatory) A small country, especially one in Central America or the West Indies, that is dependent on a single export commodity (traditionally bananas) and that has a corrupt, dictatorial government. Hypernym: kleptocracy Near-synonym: republiqueta ==== Related terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Further reading === banana republic on Wikipedia.Wikipedia == Italian == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English banana republic. === Noun === banana republic f (invariable) (rare, politics, idiomatic, derogatory) banana republic Synonym: repubblica delle banane