power politics

noun

plural in form but singular or plural in construction

: politics based primarily on the use of power (such as military and economic strength) as a coercive force rather than on ethical precepts

Examples of power politics in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The film will also incorporate elements of Southeast Asian power politics, including the use of shamanic practices and superstitions among political elites. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 May 2025

For not the first time, Chicago taxpayers will look to neophyte school board members to show courage in the face of unseemly power politics. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 7 May 2025

These were not the rules of the liberal international order, which sought to supplant power politics with legal procedures. —Stacie E. Goddard, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025

After Germany started two World Wars in the last century, Germany's power politics stressed the role of multilateral institutions like the U.N. and diplomacy in remedying conflicts. —Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1901, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for power politics

• biopolitics
• bolsheviks
• candlesticks
• crucifix
• intermix
• lunatics
• mensheviks
• orthotics
• politicks
• bricks
• brix
• chicks