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
  • Out of uniform and out of his comfort zone, about a week before the chaos ensues, Jack Campbell could, and probably should, be doing just anything else with his time.
    — Colton Pouncy, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • What is harder to summon from this distance is the pulsating chaos of that day, hour by hour.
    — Ann Gerhart, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of chaos
Noun
  • The setting is contemporary Paris in crisis, when civil unrest, rather amorphously presented apart from increasing numbers of military on the streets, makes evening strolls potentially problematic.
    — Jay Weissberg, Variety, 11 Sep. 2026
  • This month, the State Department updated its travel advisory for Peru, warning Americans about crime, civil unrest, kidnapping and terrorism.
    — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of unrest
Noun
  • 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
  • Decent law-abiding Israelis living in Judea/Samaria are also disgusted by behavior of the few who violate civil law & Torah by violence & lawlessness.
    — Rena Rowe, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of lawlessness
Noun
  • And even though the book is rife with grief, loss and inner turmoil, there are plenty of laughs in store too, especially for anyone who’s felt like a fish out of water themselves.
    — Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Amid the turmoil, Ortiz lost custody of her daughter in 2024.
    — Alli Rosenbloom, CNN Money, 8 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 14 Sep. 2026.

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