variants
also tsarist
or tzarist
as in oppressive
exercising power or authority without interference by others
the trustees felt that the university needed a strong, czarist leader who could propel it to world-class status
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of czarist
Compared to their forerunners in the tsarist era, with their party congresses held abroad, their executive committees, and their active recruitment in imperial Russia’s universities, Soviet dissidents remained a comparatively small and informal conglomeration of activists.
—
Benjamin Nathans
september 24, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
Since tsarist times, Russia has ensured Armenia’s loyalty by promising to defend it against the Ottoman Empire (and then against its successor, Turkey) with sustained military support.
—Thomas De Waal, Foreign Affairs, 22 Sep. 2025
Benjamin Nathans
september 24, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
Since tsarist times, Russia has ensured Armenia’s loyalty by promising to defend it against the Ottoman Empire (and then against its successor, Turkey) with sustained military support.
—Thomas De Waal, Foreign Affairs, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for czarist
Adjective
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These political executions are a callous attempt by the authorities to frighten and silence an increasingly restive population no longer willing to accept their corrupt and oppressive rule.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Unlike the oppressive governments that have been affiliated with the socialist movement, modern-day democratic socialism strictly advocates for policies that can be enacted without threatening the power of the people.—
Meredith Kile,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Led by a far-right authoritarian government, the country has nevertheless encouraged rooftop and utility-scale solar through a mix of government rebates and relaxed regulations.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Unlike communism and other authoritarian systems of government, democratic socialists believe in democracy.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Landor should ahve been protected by the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, passed unanimously by Congress in 2000 to prevent state and local prisons from placing arbitrary or unnecessary restrictions on religious practices.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
10 Nov. 2025
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The notion of a non-arbitrary, standard length got a boost in the early days of physics, with the idea of a length that could be held to a standard that anyone on Earth could adhere to.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Moraes was operating within a young and fragile constitution ratified in 1988 after years of autocratic rule, Brandao said, one that had failed so far to stem pervasive corruption in the country.—
Ron Kampeas,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Trump has borrowed liberally (or perhaps more accurately, illiberally) from Orbán’s playbook for autocratic capture, and now Orbán is seeking favors in return.—
Kim Lane Scheppele,
Time,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Especially right now, when most of whatever happens next would seem to be determined by arbitrary and despotic centers of earthly power.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
7 Oct. 2025
-
The emergency has become the rule, transforming exceptional powers into the ordinary machinery of despotic governance.—
Beatriz Magaloni,
Foreign Affairs,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The statement had a clear connection to the musical's plot surrounding the tyrannical Wizard and Elphaba's rebellion.—
Patrick Gomez,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Nov. 2025
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Fitzpatrick, a preeminent historian of the Soviet Union, offers a concise account of Joseph Stalin’s rise to supreme power, his tyrannical rule, the black comedy surrounding his death, and his legacy in modern Russia.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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These tyrannous tabbies don’t understand that canning is not exclusively for wet food.—
Julie Klausner,
Vulture,
27 Dec. 2024
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Indeed, Daniel Roher’s pulse-pumping documentary about the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has all the ingredients: a mysterious case of near-fatal poisoning, a web of for-hire hoodlums, Vladimir Putin as the tyrannous leader behind it all.—
Tomris Laffly,
Harper's BAZAAR,
1 Feb. 2022
Adjective
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Their dictatorial hermit nation is often called Africa’s North Korea.—
Mick Krever,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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Trump is unconventional, but not dictatorial.—
Nicole Russell,
USA Today,
23 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Czarist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/czarist. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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