dictatorship

noun

dic·​ta·​tor·​ship dik-ˈtā-tər-ˌship 

ˈdik-ˌtā-

1

: the office of dictator

2

: autocratic rule, control, or leadership

people suffering under his dictatorship

3

a

: a form of government in which absolute power is concentrated in a dictator or a small clique

Communism and dictatorship

b

: a government organization or group in which absolute power is so concentrated

rising up against a military dictatorship

c

: a despotic state

establishing a dictatorship

Synonyms

• absolutism
• autarchy
• authoritarianism
• autocracy
• Caesarism
• czarism
• tsarism
• tzarism
• despotism
• totalism
• totalitarianism
• tyranny

Examples of dictatorship in a Sentence

The country suffered for many years under his dictatorship.

His enemies accused him of establishing a dictatorship.

Recent Examples on the Web

Groups such as Fighters for a Free North Korea have long sent balloons carrying items prohibited in the isolated totalitarian dictatorship – including food, medicine, radios, propaganda leaflets and pieces of South Korean news. —Yoonjung Seo, CNN, 9 June 2024

The country’s justice system was still being overhauled after the end of the military dictatorship more than a decade earlier in which tens of thousands of people were killed. —Ana Lankes, New York Times, 8 June 2024

Marcos has a pending $2 billion judgment against him in a U.S. court relating to his parents’ human-rights record during their more than 20-year dictatorship, which ended in 1986. —Massimo Calabresi / Washington, TIME, 4 June 2024

Ukraine is a sovereign state which stands with our NATO allies in Western Europe against Putin’s dangerous dictatorship. —Baltimore Sun Media, Baltimore Sun, 11 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

dictator + -ship, as translation of Latin dictātūra

First Known Use

1542, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

dictatorship

noun

dic·​ta·​tor·​ship dik-ˈtāt-ər-ˌship 

ˈdik-ˌtāt-

1

: the office of a dictator

2

: rule, control, or leadership by one person with total power

3

: a government or country in which total power is held by a dictator or a small group