absolutism

noun

ab·​so·​lut·​ism ˈab-sə-ˌlü-ˌti-zəm 

1

a

: a political theory that absolute power should be vested in one or more rulers

b

: government by an absolute ruler or authority : despotism

2

: advocacy of a rule by absolute standards or principles

3

: an absolute standard or principle

absolutist

ˈab-sə-ˌlü-tist 

noun or adjective

absolutistic

ˌab-sə-(ˌ)lü-ˈti-stik 

adjective

Synonyms

• tyranny
• dictatorship
• fascism
• tsarism
• autocracy
• despotism
• Communism
• authoritarianism
• totalitarianism

Examples of absolutism in a Sentence

concerning absolutism Lord Acton famously observed that “absolute power corrupts absolutely”

Recent Examples on the Web

Lyra’s quest to understand Dust brings her into confrontation with human and other worldly forces who champion moral absolutism over imagination, ignorance over knowledge, authoritarianism over free will and cold, disinterested rationality over empathy. —Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025

As Perez wrote, Musk’s free-speech absolutism was a fiction perpetuated by a pliant media. —Jacob Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Oct. 2025

The History of a Dangerous Idea, Dabhoiwala sees First Amendment absolutism in the practices of Facebook and its ilk. —Kwame Anthony Appiah, The New York Review of Books, 25 Sep. 2025

The idea that executive absolutism can be stopped by a single district judge is a romantic but inaccurate one. —George Liebmann, Baltimore Sun, 2 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

absolute + -ism (in political sense after French absolutisme)

First Known Use

1823, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for absolutism

• activism
• ageism
• albinism
• altruism
• aneurism
• animism
• aphorism
• atomism
• barbarism
• bolshevism
• botulism
• brahmanism