Thesaurus results for AUTOCRATS

autocrats

noun

plural of autocrat

as in rulers

one who rules over a people with a sole, supreme, and usually hereditary authority European autocrats once commonly believed that they had received the right to rule directly from God

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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 autocrats Even as long-reigning autocrats such as Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are removed from power, the outlook for the global state of democracy remains highly uncertain. —

Yana Gorokhovskaia, Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2026 Trump’s attacks may have raised some doubts in China that Xi’s backing of autocrats is wise. —

Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026 These autocrats have watched and learned as Erdoğan has scapegoated various rival groups in his country, branding them shadowy forces unleashed by the American philanthropist George Soros. —

Kaya Genç, The Dial, 3 Feb. 2026 The book examines the worst acts of autocrats and tyrannical leaders dating back centuries. —

Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 27 Jan. 2026 The central question is whether the rise of autocrats is reversible. —

Max Hastings, Twin Cities, 11 Jan. 2026 The strategic logic mirrors survival patterns of past regional autocrats. —

Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 7 Jan. 2026 One of the biggest changes in the past three decades is the rise of the support network that autocrats and would-be autocrats now enjoy. —

Nic Cheeseman, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025 His latest book, Slow Poison, focuses on the making of the Ugandan state post British colonialism and the two autocrats that largely shaped it. —

Leila Fadel, NPR, 16 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for autocrats

Noun

Many of the opportunities available were in projects that supported the state’s narrative — from historical dramas valorizing medieval Hindu rulers, to biopics in praise of its leaders.

— Taran Khan, The Dial, 24 Mar. 2026
Erasing historic figures from the public sphere is an exercise in power going back to the pharaohs, a way rulers ensured future generations couldn’t learn about their enemies.

— Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2026