1
as in domineering
fond of ordering people around
an imperious little boy who liked to tell the other scouts what to do
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in arrogant
having a feeling of superiority that shows itself in an overbearing attitude
an imperious movie star who thinks she's some sort of goddess
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in arbitrary
having or showing a tendency to force one's will on others without any regard to fairness or necessity
an office administrator with an imperious manner that really grates on people
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in urgent
needing immediate attention
as war casualties mounted, the need for trained nurses became imperious
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of imperious
Bundelkhand is represented by Maans ke Dahi Bade, a lamb-and-lentil recipe improvised by Maharaja Digvijaya Singh of Sailana, while Panna finds its spot through the imperious-sounding Aash-e-Sangsheer.
—
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Thus André Breton—the imperious leader of the French Surrealist group with which Alberto Giacometti had made common cause in the late 1920s—chided the artist for his return to sculpting human likenesses after 1935.
—Ara H. Merjian, ARTnews.com, 16 Apr. 2026
As Rose’s impoverished yet imperious mother Ruth, Parson’s dry deliveries offer great comic ballast to this ship of fools.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 13 Apr. 2026
My sister, Louise, had spent hours perfecting the screechy, imperious cry of Starscream, only to use it when phoning the takeaway and ordering curry sauce and chips.
—Douglas Stuart, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for imperious
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Thus André Breton—the imperious leader of the French Surrealist group with which Alberto Giacometti had made common cause in the late 1920s—chided the artist for his return to sculpting human likenesses after 1935.
—Ara H. Merjian, ARTnews.com, 16 Apr. 2026
As Rose’s impoverished yet imperious mother Ruth, Parson’s dry deliveries offer great comic ballast to this ship of fools.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 13 Apr. 2026
My sister, Louise, had spent hours perfecting the screechy, imperious cry of Starscream, only to use it when phoning the takeaway and ordering curry sauce and chips.
—Douglas Stuart, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for imperious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imperious
Adjective
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Among those acolytes is Lucien (Jérémy Gillet), a reedy, repressed young virgin who yearns to be part of the gay community but hasn’t the courage to come out to his domineering mother Christine (Elisabeth Wiener), who also just happens to be the country’s very right-wing health minister.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
23 May 2026
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Down at the bottom of the hierarchy, or really not ranked at all, is Lucien (Jérémy Gillet), a fey and cosseted twink of privilege who longs to meet Jim but is kept at home, safely away from anything gay, by his domineering mother.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
Adjective
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The tension between the two boils over into a confrontation which only Eisenhower can adjudicate, a task complicated by his own arrogant British subordinate, a wiry and dislikable General Bernard Montgomery - played with a villainous verve bordering on the pantomime by Damian Lewis.—
Daniel Jonah Wolpert,
NPR,
29 May 2026
-
Public policy decisions always need to strive for middle ground, and those leadership decisions often referred to as arrogant can just as easily be called principled leadership.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
23 May 2026
Adjective
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Given that, the court concluded that forcing UCAR to give up its supercomputing center was arbitrary and capricious, and thus violated the Administrative Procedures Act.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
2 June 2026
-
More people know about arbitrary arrests and imprisonments.—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
30 May 2026
Adjective
-
The book does often feel like a recording of a mental jam session, but there is also a sense of being guided by a kind of hesitating yet urgent voice that needs to get things figured out.—
Craig Morgan Teicher,
Literary Hub,
1 June 2026
-
Drums echo off concrete walls, whistles slice through the night air, and thousands of voices gather into something loud and urgent.—
Radier Odhiambo,
Condé Nast Traveler,
31 May 2026
Adjective
-
During the Cold War, the United States partnered with authoritarian regimes, such as Anastasio Somoza of Nicaragua and Mobutu Sese Seko in then-Zaire, to contain Soviet expansion, often generating backlash.—
Wesley Alexander Hill,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2026
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Will Mourinho take the more authoritarian approach he is expected to?—
Guillermo Rai,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
The impact was particularly acute in the off-price sector.—
Gabrielle Fonrouge,
CNBC,
1 June 2026
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Cloud, who portrayed the endearing drug dealer Fezco O’Neill in the show’s first two seasons, died of acute intoxication — an accidental overdose — in 2023.—
Tracy Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
1 June 2026
Adjective
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Silver’s background played an instrumental role in the NBA building a credible and authoritative case to expel Ballmer’s predecessor, Donald Sterling, as Clippers owner after Sterling’s racist comments led to NBA players threatening a boycott and sponsors cutting ties with the Clippers.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
2 June 2026
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Read the authoritative profile of how Wilson has worked to make Homer modern.—
Caroline Mimbs Nyce,
New Yorker,
2 June 2026
Adjective
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Platforms delegate the illusion of control and trade on a libertarian myth to obscure the autocratic reality.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 May 2026
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Magyar, whose center-right Tisza party defeated far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his nationalist-populist Fidesz in an earthquake election last month, has vowed to dismantle the political and economic system his autocratic predecessor spent 16 years building.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Imperious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imperious. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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