as in tyranny
rule, control, or leadership by one person with absolute power
A soaring crime rate and civil unrest were harbingers to the rise of fascism in the country.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 fascism
Communist revolution isn’t top of mind in blue or red states—and neither is a wave of voters eager for fascism.
—
Will Johnson, Time, 1 Jan. 2026
Set in near-future Tokyo, the film follows a group of delinquents living out their last days of high school while the threat of a catastrophic earthquake causes their government to descend into fascism.
—Anastasia Sanger, Glamour, 22 Dec. 2025
The German school system still teaches civic education, including basic knowledge of democratic institutions and rule of law, along with the bleak history of Hitler’s fascism.
—Trudy Rubin, Mercury News, 20 Dec. 2025
The students then launched into a brief debate about fascism, with the agitator claiming that President Donald Trump is a fascist.
—Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 7 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fascism
Will Johnson, Time, 1 Jan. 2026
Set in near-future Tokyo, the film follows a group of delinquents living out their last days of high school while the threat of a catastrophic earthquake causes their government to descend into fascism.
—Anastasia Sanger, Glamour, 22 Dec. 2025
The German school system still teaches civic education, including basic knowledge of democratic institutions and rule of law, along with the bleak history of Hitler’s fascism.
—Trudy Rubin, Mercury News, 20 Dec. 2025
The students then launched into a brief debate about fascism, with the agitator claiming that President Donald Trump is a fascist.
—Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 7 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fascism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fascism
Noun
-
Continue reading … 'HISTORIC DAY' – Venezuelan opposition leader celebrates January 3 as 'day that justice defeated tyranny' after Maduro capture.—
,
FOXNews.com,
6 Jan. 2026
-
In the past, a popular uprising or a coup could bring tyranny to an end.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
4 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Long before authoritarianism took hold, many Venezuelans felt that the system no longer worked for them.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
9 Jan. 2026
-
These efforts served as a soft-power hedge against authoritarianism, making clear that economic ties should also elevate human dignity.—
Tharo Khun,
Sourcing Journal,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The Iran Human Rights Society (IHRS) identified the soldier as Javid Khales, who was arrested during the nationwide protests of 1404, a major wave of anti-regime demonstrations from late 2025 to early 2026 calling for an end to the country’s current dictatorship.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
21 Jan. 2026
-
The Wave exploring whether a dictatorship could emerge in modern Germany.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
20 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
His loathing for totalitarianism was among the very few hatreds Reagan ever held, his biographer Edmund Morris said.—
Peter Wehner,
The Atlantic,
9 Jan. 2026
-
After Al Qaeda and then Saddam Hussein abruptly emerged as incarnations of a new totalitarianism, Michael Ignatieff and Niall Ferguson, among many others, impatiently urged the United States to assume its imperial obligations and impose democracy, human rights, and free trade through war.—
Victor J. Blue,
Harpers Magazine,
23 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fascism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fascism. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
