authoritarianism

noun

Definition of authoritarianismnext
as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power a critical period that saw a number of third-world countries abandon authoritarianism for democracy

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for authoritarianism
  1. tyranny
  2. dictatorship
  3. fascism
  4. autocracy
  5. totalitarianism
  6. despotism
Noun
  • The collapse of the Assad regime, the tyranny in Damascus, offers great opportunity but also is fraught with significant dangers.
    Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2024
  • The show is airing at a time when a lot of people are thinking about tyranny in a very concrete way.
    Charles Pulliam-Moore, The Verge, 4 Dec. 2024
Definition of tyranny
Noun
  • Older generations lived under the violent military dictatorships of the nineteen-sixties, seventies, and eighties, and young people are aware of this legacy.
    E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2024
  • Of 5,000 people held at the school during the dictatorship, fewer than 250 survived.
    Joshua Hammer, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Dec. 2024
Definition of dictatorship
Noun
  • Under rules designed to prevent the instability that facilitated the rise of fascism in the 1930s, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier can only dissolve parliament and call an election if the chancellor calls, and loses, a confidence vote.
    Fox News, Fox News, 16 Dec. 2024
  • Years later, in 2016, Viren sets out to write a book that treats that period in her life as an allegory for the rise of fascism in the United States.
    Tajja Isen, The Atlantic, 11 Dec. 2024
Definition of fascism
Noun
  • The similarities among these places are real, because Russia, Iran, Venezuela, North Korea, and, until now, Syria all belong to an informal network of autocracies.
    Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 8 Dec. 2024
  • Assad may melt away into exile in a lavish row of Moscow dachas, and his hollow autocracy may crumble fast.
    Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 7 Dec. 2024
Definition of autocracy
Noun
  • Rasoulof has talked about purposefully making his films less allegorical as his career has progressed, preferring to present his stories about oppression and totalitarianism plainly, so that his resentments are indisputable.
    Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 27 Nov. 2024
  • Mann understood the appeal of totalitarianism early on.
    George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
Definition of totalitarianism
Noun
  • Although Adolf Hitler met his road to perdition, Joseph Stalin survived and extended his despotism.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2024
  • His thug military’s attacks — and those of his thug street enforcers known as colectivos — on Venezuelans who’ve taken to the streets to protest his Gómez-ish despotism?
    Tim Padgett, Orlando Sentinel, 9 Aug. 2024
Definition of despotism
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near authoritarianism

authoritarian

authoritarianism

authoritarians

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Cite this Entry

“Authoritarianism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/authoritarianism. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

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More from Merriam-Webster on authoritarianism

Nglish: Translation of authoritarianism for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of authoritarianism for Arabic Speakers

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