oligarchic

adjective

ol·​i·​gar·​chic ˌä-lə-ˈgär-kik 

ˌō-

variants or oligarchical

ˌä-lə-ˈgär-ki-kəl 

ˌō-

: of, relating to, or based on an oligarchy

Examples of oligarchic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the 1990s, lawlessness, oligarchic looting, and staggering inequality fueled resentment and disillusionment. —Karim Sadjadpour, Foreign Affairs, 14 Oct. 2025

Sweeney also paraded around in Venice at Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez’s oligarchic wedding, despite only being there to secure a business investment. —Martha Ross, Mercury News, 3 Sep. 2025

Many of the rank-and-file workers without whom Bezos, Dell and their fellow plutocrats could have reached their pinnacles of fortune have struggled in the oligarchic economy, relying on public assistance to make ends meet. —Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2025

All of this is in the service of pushing more tax cuts for the rich, consolidating economic and political power in the hands of elites, and crushing the opposition to oligarchic rule. —Jim Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, Medieval Latin & Greek; French oligarchique, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Medieval Latin oligarchicus, borrowed from Greek oligarchikós, from oligarchía oligarchy + -ikos -ic entry 1

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for oligarchic

• anarchic
• hierarchic