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Pronunciation varies by accent · noun
(politics) Social assistance given to a community in order to retain popularity with the electorate..
In summary, the recognition of the mandate of a group by government is useful not only to the group's leaders but to government as well. The existence and operations of organized groups introduce an element of stability into the political process; […] they enable government to carry on a continuous process of “fence mending” by continually drawing attention to the fences which require mending; […]
Patronage and political fence mending had come to bore him.
Use fence-mending when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.
Fence-mending means (politics) Social assistance given to a community in order to retain popularity with the electorate..
The closest synonym depends on the sentence and intended sense.
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
In summary, the recognition of the mandate of a group by government is useful not only to the group's leaders but to government as well. The existence and operations of organized groups introduce an element of stability into the political process; […] they enable government to carry on a continuous process of “fence mending” by continually drawing attention to the fences which require mending; […]
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