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In diktat you might recognize the English word dictate. Both words derive from Latin dictare ("to assert" or "to dictate"), a form of dicere ("to say"). Diktat passed through German where it meant "something dictated." Dictate can mean both "to speak words aloud to be transcribed" and "to issue a command or injunction," the sense of the word that gave us dictator. Germans, beginning with Prince Wilhelm, used diktat in a negative way to refer to the Treaty of Versailles, the document ending World War I. Today diktat can be used as a critical term for even minor regulations felt to be unfair or authoritarian.
Examples of diktat in a Sentence
Newsweek Contributors, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Oct. 2025
The First Amendment protects that exchange of ideas and no president’s directive, governor’s diktat, or chancellor’s command can override the Constitution.
—Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 28 Sep. 2025
Federal courts hand Trump a string of losses The president’s attempt to run the country via executive diktat suffered a setback as federal judges ruled against his administration in a set of unrelated cases.
—Peter Vanham, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2025
Vision statements and culture values aren’t diktats.
—Vibhas Ratanjee, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for diktat
Cite this Entry
“Diktat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diktat. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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