1
as in monarchy
a system of government in which a religious body holds unlimited power
Under a theocracy, an entire nation officially follows one religion.
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2
as in democracy
a group of people who live in a territory ruled by a religious body
The country was a theocracy governed by religious leaders.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of theocracy
The purpose of Iran is Shiite theocracy, for its own sake and as a counterweight to democratic, secular, and Sunni governments allied with the United States in the region.
—
Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
Khamenei’s public absence throughout the conflict and his raspy speech in its aftermath have prompted speculation about his health and the theocracy’s continuity of leadership.
—Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 6 Aug. 2025
Any sense that history trends in a general direction—toward freedom, perhaps, or toward rights, markets, secularism, or science—is confounded by a large, prosperous country becoming a hard-line semi-theocracy.
—Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
More broadly, Iranian American artists yearn for a future when Iran isn’t automatically conflated in American popular culture with theocracy, militancy and radicalism.
—Dan Bilefsky, HollywoodReporter, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for theocracy
Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
Khamenei’s public absence throughout the conflict and his raspy speech in its aftermath have prompted speculation about his health and the theocracy’s continuity of leadership.
—Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 6 Aug. 2025
Any sense that history trends in a general direction—toward freedom, perhaps, or toward rights, markets, secularism, or science—is confounded by a large, prosperous country becoming a hard-line semi-theocracy.
—Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
More broadly, Iranian American artists yearn for a future when Iran isn’t automatically conflated in American popular culture with theocracy, militancy and radicalism.
—Dan Bilefsky, HollywoodReporter, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for theocracy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for theocracy
Noun
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Although much of the country’s instability is rooted in its internal fractiousness and troubled transition from monarchy to republican democracy, many Nepalis believe India’s meddling has deepened their endemic political crisis.—
MUHIB RAHMAN,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Nov. 2025
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More profoundly, the BBC functions as a sort of national glue, sitting alongside institutions like the monarchy that are supposed to rise above politics and provide a common reference point for the whole country.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
11 Nov. 2025
Noun
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On the issues of crime and immigration, Republicans were seen as more capable, while Democrats outranked them on health care and democracy.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
9 Nov. 2025
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Venezuela’s Maria Corina Machado, who just won this year’s Nobel Peace Prize for years of fighting to restore democracy to her country, and Lionel Messi.—
Vinod Sreeharsha,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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But for anyone outside the British elite, the constitutional monarchism that emerged after the civil wars did not look much like democracy or true liberty.—
Andrew Cockburn,
Harper's Magazine,
20 Aug. 2024
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And the Decemberists tried to overthrow the Tsar and insist on having some of the more basic aspects of representative constitutional monarchism introduced into Russia.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
7 Dec. 2022
Noun
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With war looming and chaos consuming the kingdom —drawing in the ruthless kings of other Scandinavian countries and even a powerful English ruler — the stage is set for a thundering, cataclysmic, compelling, and utterly magical new Norse saga.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
11 Nov. 2025
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Snowmaking machines at the kingdom will pump out 100 tons of snow every 24 hours.—
Kirby Adams,
Louisville Courier Journal,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The forest for the trees Nestled between China, India and Thailand, Myanmar gained independence from Britain in 1948 but came under military dictatorship in 1962.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
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Both lived under dictatorships.—
Elizabeth B. Kim,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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OneCoin was reportedly banking with JSC Capital Bank in the former Soviet republic of Georgia at least for some time in 2015.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
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Every cycle, every generation, there is a relearning of the truths of living in a democratic republic.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Theocracy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/theocracy. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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