dystopia

noun

dys·​to·​pia (ˌ)dis-ˈtō-pē-ə How to pronounce dystopia (audio)
1
: an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives
There's almost a flavor of science fiction to the scenes Chilson describes, as though he were giving us a glimpse into a 21st-century dystopia of mad egoism and hurtling hulks of metal.Adam Goodheart
Over the course of the movie, the late-60's ideal of togetherness turns into a dystopia of violence, revulsion and finally death.John Leland
2
: anti-utopia sense 2
writing a dystopia
… leaping across the century to the 1990's to attempt a dystopia about the disintegration of Australian democracy into startling, irreversible despotism.Pearl K. Bell

Examples of dystopia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
But Postman, then a professor of culture and media studies at NYU, believed Americans were fixated on the wrong dystopia. Time, 10 Sep. 2025 Michael Lentz’s novel Schattenfroh portrays a dystopia in which consciousness itself is just another commodity. Anahid Nersessian, The New York Review of Books, 4 Sep. 2025 Privacy advocates say the company is building an unprecedented mass-surveillance dystopia. Danielle Chemtob, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 Look at the White House; in fiction, dystopia feels farther away, at least. Hannah Berman august 27, Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for dystopia

Word History

Etymology

dys- + -topia (in utopia)

First Known Use

1919, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of dystopia was in 1919

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dystopia.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dystopia. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

dystopia

noun
dys·​to·​pia
(ˌ)dis-ˈtō-pē-ə
: an imaginary place where people are unhappy and usually afraid because they are not treated fairly
also : a work of literature about such a place
dystopian
-ən
adjective

Medical Definition

dystopia

noun
dys·​to·​pia dis-ˈtō-pē-ə How to pronounce dystopia (audio)
: malposition of an anatomical part
dystopic adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on dystopia

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!