as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power
concerning absolutism Lord Acton famously observed that "absolute power corrupts absolutely"
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Recent Examples of absolutism
Public discourse must resist the seduction of emotional absolutism, demanding instead that moral arguments be grounded in fact and logic.
—
Kevin Waldman, Twin Cities, 10 Apr. 2025
In our skies as in our social lives, incremental change, like ring rain, seems to work slowly, while acts of frightening absolutism seem to happen overnight.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2024
In other words, the absolutism or the abolitionist approach to cutting out meat from our diet doesn’t work for a lot of people.
—Shalom Daniel, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
Bolton’s moral absolutism does not play well there.
—Christopher Sabatini, Foreign Affairs, 21 Mar. 2019
See All Example Sentences for absolutism
Kevin Waldman, Twin Cities, 10 Apr. 2025
In our skies as in our social lives, incremental change, like ring rain, seems to work slowly, while acts of frightening absolutism seem to happen overnight.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2024
In other words, the absolutism or the abolitionist approach to cutting out meat from our diet doesn’t work for a lot of people.
—Shalom Daniel, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
Bolton’s moral absolutism does not play well there.
—Christopher Sabatini, Foreign Affairs, 21 Mar. 2019
See All Example Sentences for absolutism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for absolutism
Noun
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As previously announced, Andrew Garfield stars as the legendary leader of a ferocious rebellion against the tyranny of King Richard II.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
13 Oct. 2025
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Andrew Garfield is leading the feature that is now in production, portraying the leader of a ferocious rebellion against the tyranny of King Richard II.—
Borys Kit,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Made as Brazil’s dictatorship was losing its grip, these films confronted repression indirectly, turning sensuality into an act of defiance.—
Lise Pedersen,
Variety,
12 Oct. 2025
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As the series continues, the twins find their parents, grow up, fall in love and fight dictatorship.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
12 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Thomas Pynchon has been warning us about American fascism the whole time.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Oct. 2025
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His latest novel in English, , unfolds in a single sentence and reflects anxieties about rising fascism in Europe.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
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This is a democracy versus autocracy issue.—
Andrea Hsu,
NPR,
7 Oct. 2025
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Yet the film’s timeliness is still a tonic, given that the spirit of autocracy looks more and more like a virus that now wants to take over the world.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In recent months, as despotism intensified an increasing number of writers, scholars, and thinkers were declared foreign agents, and their books were taken off the shelves.—
Nina Khrushcheva,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025
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The Bashar Assad regime’s collapse inspired a wave of optimism about despotism turning into democracy.—
Daniel DePetris,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Aug. 2025
Noun
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And Trump should not be surprised when millions of Americans stand up to his authoritarianism and his greed.—
Deputy News Editor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Oct. 2025
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All this assumes that America and the West do not backslide into their own versions of authoritarianism.—
Peter Leyden,
Big Think,
7 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Except for a few shots of China’s President Xi presiding over a military parade, the film’s image of totalitarianism leans far more toward right-wing regimes; to leave out Mao, or Castro, feels like a mistake.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
3 Oct. 2025
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Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four (also stylized as 1984) was published in 1949, and served as a stark warning about the dangers of totalitarianism.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Absolutism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/absolutism. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
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