czar

noun

ˈzär  ˈ(t)sär 

variants or less commonly tsar or tzar

1

: emperor

specifically : the ruler of Russia until the 1917 revolution

2

: one having great power or authority

a banking czar

czardom noun

or less commonly tsardom or tzardom

ˈzär-dəm 

ˈ(t)sär-

Synonyms

• magnate
• tycoon
• king
• prince
• captain
• baron
• mogul

Examples of czar in a Sentence

a showbiz czar who is said to be able to make or break a career

Recent Examples on the Web

On Sunday’s This Week, Stephanopoulos pressed Vance on whether border czar Tom Homan accepted $50,000 in cash from an uncover FBI agent last year. —Ted Johnson, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2025

The White House border czar, Tom Homan, was recorded on an FBI surveillance tape in September 2024 accepting $50,000 in cash. —ABC News, 12 Oct. 2025

Recommendations include fast-tracking new weapons, appointing a centralized weapons czar, improving interagency coordination and modernizing both detection and defense systems. —Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025

Border czar Tom Homan received $50,000 in cash from undercover FBI agents. —Kate Wolffe october 9, Sacbee.com, 9 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin czar, from Russian tsar', from Old Russian tsĭsarĭ, from Goth kaisar, from Greek or Latin; Greek, from Latin Caesar — more at caesar

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for czar

• ar
• are
• bar
• barr
• car
• carr
• char
• charr
• far
• farre
• haar
• har

Kids Definition

czar

noun

variants also tsar or tzar

ˈzär

1

: the ruler of Russia until the 1917 revolution

2

: one having great power or authority

a baseball czar

czardom noun

also tsardom or tzardom

ˈzärd-əm

Etymology

Latin czar "czar," from Russian tsar' (same meaning), from early Russian tsǐsarǐ, tsěsarǐ "emperor," from a Germanic word kaisar "emperor," derived from Latin Caesar (title of a line of Roman emperors after Augustus Caesar) see Word History at emperor