# soft power

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. Political influence that is extended by means of diplomacy, media, international assistance, cultural exchanges, etc., rather than by such "hard" means as military intervention or punitive economic measures.
2. A state having this kind of power.

## Etymology
Coined by American political scientist Joseph Nye in the late 1980s and popularized in the 1990 book “Bound to Lead: The Changing Nature of American Power”.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/soft-power