1
as in arbitrary
exercising power or authority without interference by others
a dictatorial leader with total control over people's lives
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in authoritarian
fond of ordering people around
no surprise that the dictatorial manager is highly unpopular among employees
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3
as in arrogant
having or showing a tendency to force one's will on others without any regard to fairness or necessity
even the teachers chafed under the dictatorial rule of the principal
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dictatorial
Making a dictatorial decision could come back to haunt you as Mars and Uranus clash.
—
Usa Today, USA Today, 15 June 2025
The demonstration was one of thousands held across the United States to protest what many saw as the president’s attempt to acquire dictatorial powers.
—David Fleshler, Sun Sentinel, 14 June 2025
History has shown time after time that once one acquires dictatorial powers, those in other government offices become superfluous.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 June 2025
They shouldn't be deployed on American soil facing their own countrymen to fulfill the deranged fantasy of a dictatorial President.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 10 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for dictatorial
Usa Today, USA Today, 15 June 2025
The demonstration was one of thousands held across the United States to protest what many saw as the president’s attempt to acquire dictatorial powers.
—David Fleshler, Sun Sentinel, 14 June 2025
History has shown time after time that once one acquires dictatorial powers, those in other government offices become superfluous.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 June 2025
They shouldn't be deployed on American soil facing their own countrymen to fulfill the deranged fantasy of a dictatorial President.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 10 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for dictatorial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dictatorial
Adjective
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There are no longer arbitrary divisions in which people say that different functions aren’t their job or concern.—
Megan Poinski,
Forbes.com,
14 July 2025
-
Marylanders deserve a civil justice system that recognizes the full scope of human suffering and empowers citizen juries to render verdicts based on evidence rather than arbitrary limitations.—
Bruce M. Plaxen,
Baltimore Sun,
12 July 2025
Adjective
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North Korea is under sanctions from the United States — as well as the United Nations and several other countries — largely in response to the isolated authoritarian state's weapons programs.—
Alana Wise,
NPR,
25 July 2025
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While Western democracies debate environmental reviews and grid reliability, authoritarian systems can rapidly direct energy flows to computing infrastructure.—
Güney Yıldız,
Forbes.com,
25 July 2025
Adjective
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As the day goes on, Jim goes from a caricature of an arrogant male director to an oddly compelling picture of a pathetic man, moved by spite toward his ex-wife, Anita.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
10 July 2025
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Actor Tyler Hilton played Chris Keller, a charming but arrogant musician, on four seasons of the teen soap.—
Bryan West,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
Adjective
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In many areas along and east of the Mississippi River, heat index values could soar to between 110 and 115 degrees — the kind of oppressive heat that can quickly turn dangerous without proper precautions.—
Brandi D. Addison,
Austin American Statesman,
23 July 2025
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Sweltering under a heat dome that brought oppressive triple-digit temperatures and humidity to large swaths of the Midwest and East Coast, average daily highs in Chicago topped 84.1 degrees in June, 3.7 degrees above normal.—
Robert Channick,
Chicago Tribune,
22 July 2025
Adjective
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Louise Fletcher portrays the domineering head nurse Ratched.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
6 July 2025
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But Agnes can’t stop barking orders, leaving the household staff at a loss over who to listen to — their domineering former boss or the woman signing their paychecks.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
23 June 2025
Adjective
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The result is an end to the era of NGOs—a great loss for the people who have relied on these organizations’ services, and a boon to autocratic governments that have seen their advocacy as a threat.—
SARAH BUSH,
Foreign Affairs,
3 July 2025
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That changed in 1979 when Iran’s pro-American autocratic ruler, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, was overthrown and the regime known as the Islamic Republic, which still rules Iran today, was established.—
Zack Beauchamp,
Vox,
23 June 2025
Adjective
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Napoleon, the pig who takes despotic control of the farm following the revolution — voiced with haughty gusto by Seth Rogen — bears an uncanny resemblance to the current occupant of the White House.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
11 June 2025
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Bernal as a despotic and at times deluded Magellan persuades the Spanish Crown to fund his bold 16th century expedition to the fabled lands of the East, only to unleash a decade of devastation wreaked by European conquistadors in the Pacific as part of colonial conquests.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
3 June 2025
Adjective
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Since his memorable performance on the Netflix sci-fi show, Quinn has starred alongside Lupita Nyong’o in A Quiet Place: Day One and played a tyrannical emperor in Gladiator II.—
Olivia Singh,
Forbes.com,
24 July 2025
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Such control isn’t intrinsically tyrannical or oppressive.—
Michael W. Clune,
Harpers Magazine,
16 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dictatorial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dictatorial. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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