as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power
the Magna Carta is historically important because it signified the British rejection of autocracy and constituted the first formal restraining of the power of the monarch
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of autocracy
Such a distortion of justice is what leads to autocracy.
—
Chicago Tribune, 19 Mar. 2025
There are good reasons to believe that a permanent slide into autocracy is harder in the U.S. than in those countries.
—Jennifer Victor, The Conversation, 26 Mar. 2025
Investors are already fleeing as the county grows more authoritarian, and a slide into full autocracy will hardly bring them back.
—Gonul Tol, Foreign Affairs, 21 Mar. 2025
Tsarist Russia’s Feminist Intelligentsia Matthew Wills December 11, 2019
In the context of Russia's patriarchal autocracy, its intelligentsia was surprisingly feminist, as Vera Podorovskaya's life illustrates.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocracy
Chicago Tribune, 19 Mar. 2025
There are good reasons to believe that a permanent slide into autocracy is harder in the U.S. than in those countries.
—Jennifer Victor, The Conversation, 26 Mar. 2025
Investors are already fleeing as the county grows more authoritarian, and a slide into full autocracy will hardly bring them back.
—Gonul Tol, Foreign Affairs, 21 Mar. 2025
Tsarist Russia’s Feminist Intelligentsia Matthew Wills December 11, 2019
In the context of Russia's patriarchal autocracy, its intelligentsia was surprisingly feminist, as Vera Podorovskaya's life illustrates.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocracy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for autocracy
Noun
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American Values, Global Impact The United States has long been characterized by its willingness to provide refuge to those escaping tyranny.—
Andy J. Semotiuk,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
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Throughout history, across continents and cultures, people have drawn upon the Exodus narrative as a powerful metaphor and rallying cry against tyranny and injustice.—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
12 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The oligarchs in Hungary and Russia support the dictatorship with their monetary gains in return for being allowed to remain billionaires.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
4 Apr. 2025
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The biographical drama is inspired by the lives of Brazilian activist Eunice Paiva and her politician husband Rubens, who was murdered for his dissidence toward the military dictatorship of 1970s Brazil.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Leading scholars, including historians of fascism, keep making alarming comparisons between WW2 and the present.—
Chris Doyle,
Hartford Courant,
2 Apr. 2025
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The bottom line: The recent arrests and lack of due process in other cases have some experts worried about the nation's trend toward fascism and authoritarianism under Trump, writes Axios' Russell Contreras and Steph Solis.—
Esteban L. Hernandez,
Axios,
1 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The necessity of power sharing also meant that Congress could provide a check against despotism even if the same party held the Presidency and a majority in both houses.—
David D. Kirkpatrick,
New Yorker,
31 Mar. 2025
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And there are worse messages to be putting out into the world via family films right now than celebrating the virtues of kindness and fairness over cruel despotism.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
19 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Autocracy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autocracy. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
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