as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power
the Magna Carta is historically important because it signified the British rejection of autocracy and constituted the first formal restraining of the power of the monarch
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of autocracy
The Biden administration completed the reversion to a Cold War frame, declaring a global divide between democracies and autocracies, with China and Russia reprising their roles as principal foes.
—
Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025
Assayas addressed the timeliness of the Putin story in a world where autocracy seems to be relentlessly on the rise.
—Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2025
The antidote to Trump’s American breed of autocracy is understanding the severity of the threat at hand.
—Stacey Abrams, Time, 28 Aug. 2025
Our depressing slide into sclerotic autocracy continues.
—Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocracy
Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025
Assayas addressed the timeliness of the Putin story in a world where autocracy seems to be relentlessly on the rise.
—Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2025
The antidote to Trump’s American breed of autocracy is understanding the severity of the threat at hand.
—Stacey Abrams, Time, 28 Aug. 2025
Our depressing slide into sclerotic autocracy continues.
—Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocracy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for autocracy
Noun
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These cars are sensational, liberating Honda’s engineering excellence from the tyranny of front-wheel drive.—
Robert Ross,
Robb Report,
28 Oct. 2025
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Andrew Garfield leads the feature that is now in production, portraying the leader of a ferocious rebellion against the tyranny of King Richard II.—
Borys Kit,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Minister Kabawat is a member of the Christian minority and a longtime member of the opposition to the former dictatorship of Bashar Al-Assad that was defeated by Al-Shara in late 2024.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
27 Oct. 2025
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After the fall of Hungary’s Communist dictatorship, dozens of decommissioned monuments were sent to Budapest’s Memento Park, including the boots from an enormous statue of Stalin, which had been torn down by irate crowds.—
Julian Lucas,
New Yorker,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Politically or electorally speaking, Maoism could hardly be less relevant in this day and age—no one wants egalitarian totalitarianism anymore than (most) people want fascism.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
24 Oct. 2025
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Right-wing figures have blamed the Left for increasing the political temperature and resulting in Kirk’s assassination by weaponizing accusations of fascism, Nazism, and various kinds of bigotry.—
Emily Hallas,
The Washington Examiner,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In recent months, as despotism intensified an increasing number of writers, scholars, and thinkers were declared foreign agents, and their books were taken off the shelves.—
Nina Khrushcheva,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025
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Rather than panicking over Moscow’s maneuverings or conditioning their own support on Syria’s total break with Russia, U.S. and European leaders should focus on helping Syrians recover after a decade of civil war and a half century of despotism.—
Hanna Notte,
Foreign Affairs,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Two veteran data journalists are launching a new investigative publication to cover rising authoritarianism from the shadowy corners of the internet.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
27 Oct. 2025
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Vika Lomasko on authoritarianism, political art, and her book, The Last Soviet Artist.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Autocracy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autocracy. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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