as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power
by the end of the 20th century many countries around the world had rejected despotism in favor of democracy
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Recent Examples of despotism
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
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
The Bashar Assad regime’s collapse inspired a wave of optimism about despotism turning into democracy.
—Daniel Depetris, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Can that Huntington Beach teach the rest of us a thing — or thirty — not just about how to stand up to despotism, but how to beat it back?
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for despotism
Nina Khrushcheva, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
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
The Bashar Assad regime’s collapse inspired a wave of optimism about despotism turning into democracy.
—Daniel Depetris, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Can that Huntington Beach teach the rest of us a thing — or thirty — not just about how to stand up to despotism, but how to beat it back?
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for despotism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despotism
Noun
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Continue reading … 'HISTORIC DAY' – Venezuelan opposition leader celebrates January 3 as 'day that justice defeated tyranny' after Maduro capture.—
,
FOXNews.com,
6 Jan. 2026
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In the past, a popular uprising or a coup could bring tyranny to an end.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
4 Jan. 2026
Noun
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His socialist dictatorship, hostile to human life, crushed Venezuelans’ freedoms for years.—
Agustina Vergara Cid,
Oc Register,
7 Jan. 2026
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One of his uncles had been part of the resistance to the right-wing military dictatorship that controlled Greece between 1967 and 1974.—
Naaman Zhou,
New Yorker,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Europe was collapsing under fascism.—
Philip Martin,
Washington Post,
7 Jan. 2026
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This is likewise the thrust of Salò, based on the Marquis de Sade’s The 120 Days of Sodom, an orgiastic, disturbing carnival of torture, rape, and killing, reset by Pasolini in the town from which fascism reigned in the 1940s.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The time has come to stop this slippery slope to autocracy, restoring our democracy and reaffirming the core values upon which our country was built and persevered.—
Richard Cherwitz,
Sun Sentinel,
6 Jan. 2026
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There’s a very strong correlation with the rise of autocracy and human-rights abuses and bad governance and the increase in anti-American discourse.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
5 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Despotism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despotism. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
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