as in tyrant
a person who uses power or authority in a cruel, unjust, or harmful way
the dictator had a fierce stranglehold on the country, keeping its people in poverty and ignorance
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Recent Examples of dictator
The persecution worsened more than a decade ago during uprisings that remade the Middle East by toppling dictators — including Egyptian strongman Hosni Mubarak — but in some places spiraled into civil war.
—
Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
Movie lovers tend to think of producers as dictators of formulas, oppressors of originality, the enemies of art, but that just reflects the unfortunate history of studio filmmaking in Hollywood and elsewhere.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 10 Sep. 2025
Marinetti’s vision later drove him to support and even influence the early fascism of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini.
—Sonja Fritzsche, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025
These aren’t our only dictators.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 9 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dictator
Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
Movie lovers tend to think of producers as dictators of formulas, oppressors of originality, the enemies of art, but that just reflects the unfortunate history of studio filmmaking in Hollywood and elsewhere.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 10 Sep. 2025
Marinetti’s vision later drove him to support and even influence the early fascism of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini.
—Sonja Fritzsche, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025
These aren’t our only dictators.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 9 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dictator
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dictator
tyrant
Noun
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So, the politicians must do more than push back against the White House tyrant.—
Laura Washington,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Sep. 2025
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And while the band's frontman Freddie Mercury only made it into his 40s, the song's question continues to haunt people—especially aging tyrants who fear that the icy hand of death is upon their shoulder and want far more time to ensure both national and personal glory.—
Nate Anderson,
ArsTechnica,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dictator.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dictator. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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