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anarchy

noun

ˈa-nər-kē How to pronounce anarchy (audio)
Definition of anarchynext
as in chaos
a state in which there is widespread wrongdoing and disregard for rules and authority the anarchy that the country experienced after the dictator drained the treasury and fled the country

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of anarchy The Flyers’ offer sheet was an act of aggressive, beautiful sports anarchy. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 29 July 2026 Their descent into anarchy was a slow burn, rather than instant ignition. — Adam Crafton, New York Times, 20 July 2026 Following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse five years ago, Haiti has existed in a state of anarchy, with organized crime controlling swaths of the country and subjecting millions of Haitians to deprivation and extreme violence. — Max Klaver, Miami Herald, 10 July 2026 Few if any of the committees called for democracy, which probably would have smacked of anarchy to them. — T. H. Breen, The Atlantic, 3 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for anarchy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anarchy
  1. chaos
  2. unrest
  3. lawlessness
  4. turmoil
  5. misrule
Noun
  • Today chaos gives bad people the opportunity to advance their own nefarious agendas with little regards for the American people.
    — Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Democrats, especially under President Joe Biden, spent years treating border enforcement as optional, and the chaos that followed put American safety at risk.
    — Don Bacon, Washington Post, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of chaos
Noun
  • Instead of calling for calm and letting the justice system work, too many political leaders on the left and progressive social influencers either fanned the flames of unrest or failed to act until enormous damage was done.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Already, many import-dependent countries face shortages, fiscal pressure, and in some cases a difficult choice between cutting fuel subsidies and risking unrest or maintaining them and further weakening public finances.
    — RICHARD HAASS, Foreign Affairs, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of unrest
Noun
  • Elsewhere, however, the book suggests that the present lawlessness is itself that better outcome.
    — Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026
  • But more important to us right now is getting healthcare to the American people and ending the lawlessness.
    — NBC news, NBC news, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of lawlessness
Noun
  • Hurricane Otis in 2023 unexpectedly plunged Acapulco into turmoil for weeks.
    — MEGAN JANETSKY, Arkansas Online, 25 Sep. 2026
  • That inner turmoil is all over Faith, which is why the album remains an eternal worldwide pop obsession.
    — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of turmoil
Noun
  • As the landscape was brought back under control, its wilder elements came to be regarded with ever more suspicion and distrust, as a symbol of earlier misrule.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 July 2026
  • Expectations are now rising over the role the United States will play in helping Venezuela, which had already been laid low by decades of misrule.
    — Emma Bubola Jenna Russell Raj Saha Adam Liptak, New York Times, 27 June 2026
Definition of misrule

Browse Nearby Words

anarchs
anarchy
anathema
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Cite this Entry

“Anarchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anarchy. Accessed 28 Sep. 2026.

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