as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power
a critical period that saw a number of third-world countries abandon authoritarianism for democracy
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Recent Examples of authoritarianism
The Times’ Malia Mendez sat down with members of the all-Filipino cast to discuss the ways the show’s exploration of the perils of authoritarianism dovetail with the modern political moment.
—
Arts Editor, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
The change of mentality is profound, even with the obstacles left behind by 12 years of authoritarianism.
—Stefano Pozzebon, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
Negotiations divorced from accountability risk entrenching authoritarianism and teaching regimes that bloodshed is merely a prelude to diplomatic rehabilitation.
—Pegah Banihashemi, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
Ukrainian filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa has found success in both scripted and documentary films, many of which explore the legacy of authoritarianism in Europe and its parallels with the present.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2026
Moura inhabits the raw honesty of a man caught in the heart of authoritarianism, anchoring a timely, true-story-adjacent drama.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 11 Feb. 2026
But with his bent turned toward authoritarianism, the voters are now rejecting his policies.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 9 Feb. 2026
These comments are said against a backdrop of escalating violence and authoritarianism in this country that’s directly tied to out-of-control behavior by federal agents conducting immigration raids.
—Thomas Kennedy, Sun Sentinel, 9 Feb. 2026
This is about whether democracy wins or authoritarianism wins.
—Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 6 Feb. 2026
Arts Editor, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
The change of mentality is profound, even with the obstacles left behind by 12 years of authoritarianism.
—Stefano Pozzebon, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
Negotiations divorced from accountability risk entrenching authoritarianism and teaching regimes that bloodshed is merely a prelude to diplomatic rehabilitation.
—Pegah Banihashemi, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
Ukrainian filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa has found success in both scripted and documentary films, many of which explore the legacy of authoritarianism in Europe and its parallels with the present.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2026
Moura inhabits the raw honesty of a man caught in the heart of authoritarianism, anchoring a timely, true-story-adjacent drama.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 11 Feb. 2026
But with his bent turned toward authoritarianism, the voters are now rejecting his policies.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 9 Feb. 2026
These comments are said against a backdrop of escalating violence and authoritarianism in this country that’s directly tied to out-of-control behavior by federal agents conducting immigration raids.
—Thomas Kennedy, Sun Sentinel, 9 Feb. 2026
This is about whether democracy wins or authoritarianism wins.
—Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 6 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for authoritarianism
Noun
-
The last was King Charles I, who was tried and executed in 1649 for high treason and tyranny.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Majority rule unconstrained by the rights of individuals is majority tyranny.—
Ben Bayer,
Oc Register,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
GDPs skyrocket; cities are powered by clean nuclear fusion; dictatorships fall across the world; humanity begins to colonize the stars.—
Sam Kriss,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Those under occupation, dictatorship, persecution, and those experiencing genocide.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Watching the tentacles of fascism spread like wildfire is hard.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
-
But democratic fascism is no contradiction.—
Ben Bayer,
Oc Register,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The Iranian regime is a theocratic autocracy controlled by religious figureheads and hardliners fully committed to the system that enriches and bestows power upon them today.—
Alexander Langlois,
Oc Register,
18 Feb. 2026
-
As the United States heads toward the midterm elections, there are growing concerns among some political scientists that the country has moved even further along the path to some form of autocracy.—
Frank Langfitt,
NPR,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
His loathing for totalitarianism was among the very few hatreds Reagan ever held, his biographer Edmund Morris said.—
Peter Wehner,
The Atlantic,
9 Jan. 2026
-
After Al Qaeda and then Saddam Hussein abruptly emerged as incarnations of a new totalitarianism, Michael Ignatieff and Niall Ferguson, among many others, impatiently urged the United States to assume its imperial obligations and impose democracy, human rights, and free trade through war.—
Victor J. Blue,
Harpers Magazine,
23 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The hope is that the institutional reforms started by the interim administration of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus deliver the necessary checks and balances to avert another lurch toward despotism.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
28 Jan. 2026
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The strength and powers of despotism consist wholly in the fear of resisting it.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
16 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Authoritarianism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/authoritarianism. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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