as in dictator
a person who uses power or authority in a cruel, unjust, or harmful way
the people universally feared the tyrant, who was notorious for his frequent use of torture
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of tyrant
Bring the Paine The only thing Paine liked less than monarchical rule was its enablers, anyone who relinquished their freedom willingly to an aspiring tyrant.
—
Matthew Redmond, The Conversation, 9 Oct. 2025
The light historical touch is no doubt necessary for a series trying to sell its viewers on a love story between a modern protagonist and a character originally based on a real-life historical tyrant.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 29 Sep. 2025
Reynolds is a tetchy tyrant, who, enabled by his sister, Cyril (Lesley Manville), has embraced a need to have things just so as a means of warding off vulnerability.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2025
McDaniel has never been a screamer or a tyrant like some old-school coaches.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tyrant
Matthew Redmond, The Conversation, 9 Oct. 2025
The light historical touch is no doubt necessary for a series trying to sell its viewers on a love story between a modern protagonist and a character originally based on a real-life historical tyrant.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 29 Sep. 2025
Reynolds is a tetchy tyrant, who, enabled by his sister, Cyril (Lesley Manville), has embraced a need to have things just so as a means of warding off vulnerability.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2025
McDaniel has never been a screamer or a tyrant like some old-school coaches.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tyrant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tyrant
dictator
Noun
-
He had been found guilty of conspiring to raise funds from late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to finance his campaign, and became the first post-World War II leader in France to go to jail.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
24 Oct. 2025
-
These deployments are nothing more than partisan spite from an increasingly unhinged aspiring dictator, and the Supreme Court must halt them.—
Newsweek Contributors,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tyrant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tyrant. Accessed 2 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share