dictator

noun

dic·​ta·​tor ˈdik-ˌtā-tər 

dik-ˈtā-

1

a

: a person granted absolute emergency power

especially, history : one appointed by the senate (see senate sense 1b) of ancient Rome

b

: one holding complete autocratic control : a person with unlimited governmental power

c

: one ruling in an absolute (see absolute sense 2) and often oppressive way

fascist dictators

2

: one who says or reads something for a person to transcribe or for a machine to record : one that dictates (see dictate entry 1 sense 1)

Synonyms

• caesar
• despot
• führer
• fuehrer
• oppressor
• pharaoh
• strongman
• tyrannizer
• tyrant

Examples of dictator in a Sentence

The country was ruled by a military dictator.

the dictator had a fierce stranglehold on the country, keeping its people in poverty and ignorance

Recent Examples on the Web

In theory, Lee and Trump are well suited as a pair to wrangle the North Korean dictator. —John Delury, Foreign Affairs, 3 June 2025

Individual rights shield us from the initiation of physical force – whether by tax collectors, or dictators threatening us with missiles. —Ben Bayer, Oc Register, 19 May 2025

Romania’s two dominant parties have, amid an endless swirl of corruption scandals, rotated in and out of power since the 1989 overthrow of the communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. —Andrew Higgins, New York Times, 16 May 2025

Set against the backdrop of Imperial Russia’s criminal underworld and revolutionary ferment, the film explores the making of the bloody dictator who would reshape the 20th century through terror, war and ideology — and the largest bank heist in Russian history, according to the logline. —Tatiana Siegel, Variety, 15 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English dictatour, borrowed from Latin dictātor, from dictāre "to say repeatedly, speak aloud words to be transcribed by another, issue as an order" + -tor, agent suffix — more at dictate entry 1

Note: Though formally a derivative of dictāre, the noun dictātor is attested perhaps two centuries earlier in Latin and may be an independent formation, though the model for it is not clear; the sense "issue as an order" of dictāre may reflect influence of dictātor. The form tictator used in the Old English translation of Orosius's Historiae Adversum Paganos had no subsequent use.

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for dictator

• coater
• creator
• curator
• debater
• deflator
• dilator
• equator
• locator
• mutator
• piscator
• pronator
• relator

Kids Definition

dictator

noun

dic·​ta·​tor ˈdik-ˌtāt-ər 

dik-ˈtāt-ər

1

: a person who rules with total authority and often in a cruel or brutal manner

2

: one that dictates

dictatorial

ˌdik-tə-ˈtōr-ē-əl

-tȯr-

adjective

dictatorially

-ē-ə-lē

adverb

dictatorialness noun