Aussprache
Etymologie
() * witch + hunt
* The verbal noun witch-hunting in the literal sense from 1640, the metaphorical sense from 1932, popularized during the Cold War anti-Communist hysteria in the USA.
: The noun witch-hunt itself in the literal sense dates to 1885, in the metaphorical sense to 1938. The sense of a campaign against a single individual dates to 1960 (OED).