1
as in domineering
fond of ordering people around
grew up with an authoritarian older sister who thought she was queen of the world
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Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in strict
given to exacting standards of discipline and self-restraint
an authoritarian coach who runs football practice like it's boot camp
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in disciplinarian
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in dictator
Synonyms & Similar Words
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of authoritarian
George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
Historical dramas — in particular those centered on fearless feats of resistance against authoritarian regimes — often seek to be warnings.
—Manuel Betancourt, Variety, 30 Oct. 2024
Autocratic The autocratic style is also known as authoritarian leadership.
—Jason Miller, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
In our age of brutal wars, authoritarian politics, cultures of contempt, and technology that promises to replace us with machines, what is left of the idea of the human being?
—George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for authoritarian 
Adjective
The kaiser’s Germany—strong in arms, rich in music and philosophy, politically authoritarian—embodied Mann’s ideal.
—George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
Historical dramas — in particular those centered on fearless feats of resistance against authoritarian regimes — often seek to be warnings.
—Manuel Betancourt, Variety, 30 Oct. 2024
Autocratic The autocratic style is also known as authoritarian leadership.
—Jason Miller, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
In our age of brutal wars, authoritarian politics, cultures of contempt, and technology that promises to replace us with machines, what is left of the idea of the human being?
—George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for authoritarian
Recent Examples of Synonyms for authoritarian
Adjective
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Kenneth Kimes Troubled childhood: As a young man, Kimes went on a deadly crime spree with his domineering mother.Daniel Wine, CNN, 20 Nov. 2024
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Trump had a domineering, workaholic father who split the world into two groups: killers and losers.Alex Thompson, Axios, 1 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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About half of states have laws targeting transgender health care, but Tennessee’s is among the strictest.Ian Millhiser, Vox, 15 Nov. 2024
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Many welcome Trump’s more strict immigration policy.Kristen Taketa, The Mercury News, 11 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Youth team manager Dave Merrington was a strict disciplinarian, ensuring all the menial jobs done by budding young footballers back then — such as cleaning the dressing rooms and sweeping the terraces — had to be done to the highest standard.Richard Sutcliffe, The Athletic, 13 Aug. 2024
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Bernard Parks, chief from 1997 to 2002, had a reputation as a tough disciplinarian, which frequently put him at odds with the police union.Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2024
Noun
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Trump’s critics often accuse him of being or aspiring to be a strongman, or an autocrat, or even a fascist dictator.Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 7 Nov. 2024
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But to chortle with a murderous, anti-American dictator over a former vice president . .Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 5 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Nobody wants to be around an arrogant or disrespectful individual, in the workplace or in day-to-day life.AllBusiness, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
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So Far Trump in fact as played by Stan is a mix of charming and shy, troubled and insecure, arrogant and angry, a creative dealmaker with vision, narcissitic, cruel, self-serving, at times grief stricken.Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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The combination of this injury, the failure to find the anticipated wealth and the overall harsh conditions faced by the expedition contributed to Coronado's eventual decision to return to Mexico City in 1542.Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 28 Nov. 2024
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These ejections can collide with Earth’s magnetosphere, the barrier protecting humanity from the harshest effects of space weather, to produce geomagnetic storms that unleash spectacular views of the northern lights in parts of the country where auroras are not often visible.Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 27 Nov. 2024
Noun
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But Muir’s co-moderator, Linsey Davis, was a different case: Davis wore a mannish, gray suit jacket and struck a pose of martinet — almost schoolmarmish — solemnity.Armond White, National Review, 20 Sep. 2024
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There’s Cece’s father, long vanished; Ronnie, a predator; Marcel, a martinet; Joel, a manipulator; and a random catcaller in the street, whom Cece sends scurrying away by turning her acting skills to practical use.Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 12 June 2024
Noun
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Elphaba has helped the two tyrants permanently transform the monkeys against their will, and worse, strengthened the ensuing crackdown against the animals; hence, Elphaba is horrified by her own actions and vows to stand against Oz from that point on.Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2024
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What was criminal in the eyes of Putin and occasioned Navalny’s death was his work exposing the tyrant, his obsequious oligarchs and lickspittle party United Russia as crooks, thieves and killers.Bruce Fein, Baltimore Sun, 15 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near authoritarian
Cite this Entry
“Authoritarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/authoritarian. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.
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