1
as in cliques
a small group of people who exercise control over a country, business, etc.
Critics complain that the government is now dominated by an oligarchy of wealthy businesspeople.
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2
as in empires
government that is controlled by a small group of people
The nation was an oligarchy with election results manipulated to maintain a permanent ruling class.
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oligarchies
Noun
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This graph had no cliques — clusters of nodes that are all connected to one another.—
Leila Sloman,
Quanta Magazine,
28 Jan. 2026 -
What began as a search for community and understanding turned into an experience that felt akin to the cliques and social hierarchies of high school.—
Hannah Nwoko,
Parents,
25 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
But empires fall, and dynasties crumble.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
8 Feb. 2026
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Situated at the crossroads of empires — from Persian and Roman to Byzantine, Arab and Ottoman — it has long been shaped by conquest and survival.—
Marlise Kast-Myers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In at least three Sahel states — Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso — military juntas that came to power in coups, notably Niger and Mali, have expelled Western military forces.—
Paul Tilsley,
FOXNews.com,
19 Oct. 2025
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Kuti was an outspoken critic of Nigeria’s military juntas in the 1970s.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
17 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Several countries that once abolished their monarchies—including Spain, Cambodia, and Britain (under Oliver Cromwell)—later restored them as constitutional monarchies.—
Karim Sadjadpour,
The Atlantic,
10 Jan. 2026
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First, that monarchies are inherently corrupt.—
Dan Snyder,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Oligarchies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oligarchies. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
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