variants
also autocratical
1
as in oppressive
exercising power or authority without interference by others
democracy is supposed to protect the people against the rise of autocratic rulers
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in authoritarian
fond of ordering people around
an autocratic Boy Scout leader who is under the delusion that he's still an army colonel
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of autocratic
The action travels back and forth between 1956, in the tense time leading up to the toppling of the autocratic Batista regime, and 1996, when the young producer Juan de Marcos (Justin Cunningham) assembles a backing band for the older singers he’s brought into the studio.
—
Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2025
Critics, including autocratic governments across the region, view it as a threat.
—Omar Akour, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2025
This new, more favorable vision of Russia was developing its own intellectual architecture, one that married isolationism, nationalism and traditionalism with a growing appreciation for autocratic strongmen who were bending their countries to their will.
—Eric Jason Martin Tanya Pérez Ted Blaisdell, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
As Jews prepare to celebrate Passover’s theme of freedom, Israel and the United States face the prospect of autocratic rule.
—Ben Krull, New York Daily News, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocratic
Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2025
Critics, including autocratic governments across the region, view it as a threat.
—Omar Akour, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2025
This new, more favorable vision of Russia was developing its own intellectual architecture, one that married isolationism, nationalism and traditionalism with a growing appreciation for autocratic strongmen who were bending their countries to their will.
—Eric Jason Martin Tanya Pérez Ted Blaisdell, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
As Jews prepare to celebrate Passover’s theme of freedom, Israel and the United States face the prospect of autocratic rule.
—Ben Krull, New York Daily News, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocratic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for autocratic
Adjective
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That this sincere notion dovetails with an itch to vacate her dour, oppressive home only adds to her determination.—
Robert Abele,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Apr. 2025
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To be sure, Florida had its attractions, one of which was the sunny weather, although air conditioning was still rare at the time, and the heat and humidity could be oppressive for much of the year.—
Greg Daugherty,
Smithsonian Magazine,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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From 2019 to 2020, the authoritarian petrostate paid $115,000 a month to now–Attorney General Pam Bondi and her firm to lobby on its behalf.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
15 May 2025
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Orwell authored 1984, a bleak vision of the future where an authoritarian regime weaponizes language to suppress independent thought and rewrite history.—
Jason Snyder,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2025
Adjective
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Or whether the foundations are strong and imperious enough to uphold the £1billion ($1.3bn) industry promise fans are being pitched?—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
13 May 2025
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Johnson, an ultra-ambitious Texas Democrat but a junior House member of the House Naval Affairs Committee (which became the House Armed Services Committee after World War II), correctly surmised the panel’s imperious chairman, Georgia Democrat Carl Vinson, wasn’t going anywhere.—
David Mark,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
7 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Photo: Obscured Pictures Building the world of the film also meant drawing on all manner of cultural references—from the depths of the Vice News YouTube channel to an early ’00s documentary about American Apparel and its despotic CEO, Dov Charney, that Ulman sent to Simon Rex.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
2 May 2025
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In these ways, Trump’s despotic acts are indeed without precedent in American history.—
Patrick Eddington,
Oc Register,
20 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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For example, when a man in his sixties talks about the same thing, he’s seen as calm and logical, but when a woman in her twenties talks about it, she’s seen as arrogant or trying to act mature.—
Billboard Japan,
Billboard,
15 May 2025
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By losing some of its arrogant charm, Doom has also lost the means to back it up.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
15 May 2025
Adjective
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Coupled with his hateful rhetoric, threats, lies, erratic policies, trampling of the Constitution and abnormal fascination with childish superlatives, tyrannical figures and Soviet-era style military parades, there’s much to be concerned about.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
11 May 2025
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The Wolves rose up and defeated the tyrannical FEDRA, forcing them to abandon the quarantine zone.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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With a versatile and emotionally resonant voice, he’s known for delivering the smooth sophistication of jazz and the commanding presence needed for authoritative reads.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
17 May 2025
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When executed well, a strong content strategy creates a consistent, authoritative presence that builds both trust and familiarity, inviting potential clients to take the next step.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2025
Adjective
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Compared with Russia’s dictatorial tsarist and communist eras and its chaotic decade after the Soviet Union fell, the country had never been so prosperous and so free at the same time.—
ALEXANDER GABUEV,
Foreign Affairs,
17 Apr. 2025
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Fortunately, the courts have so far blocked this dictatorial impulse.—
Steven Greenhut,
Orange County Register,
16 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Autocratic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autocratic. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
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