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
This speaks to the potential that Iran owes to its heritage, but that has been smothered by a small, inward looking and harsh theocracy, aided and abetted by the Revolutionary Guard who exert de facto control over the Iranian economy as well as other sectors.
—
Mike O'Sullivan, Forbes.com, 20 June 2025
The Israel Defense Forces strikes took out Gen. Hossein Salami, the leader of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), inflicting a significant blow to Tehran's governing theocracy.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2025
This unprecedented international consensus backs an Iranian vision that rejects both monarchy and theocracy.
—Kazem Kazerounian, Hartford Courant, 29 May 2025
Iran launched a second round of missiles against Israel while Israel's military kept up attacks in Iran following earlier strikes that targeted nuclear and military sites and killed key leaders in the country's governing theocracy.
—Arkansas Online, 14 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for theocracy
Mike O'Sullivan, Forbes.com, 20 June 2025
The Israel Defense Forces strikes took out Gen. Hossein Salami, the leader of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), inflicting a significant blow to Tehran's governing theocracy.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2025
This unprecedented international consensus backs an Iranian vision that rejects both monarchy and theocracy.
—Kazem Kazerounian, Hartford Courant, 29 May 2025
Iran launched a second round of missiles against Israel while Israel's military kept up attacks in Iran following earlier strikes that targeted nuclear and military sites and killed key leaders in the country's governing theocracy.
—Arkansas Online, 14 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for theocracy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for theocracy
Noun
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The increase of more than 53% came as the monarchy reported record offshore wind farm profits to the Crown Estate, which is a vast royal collection of land and property across the United Kingdom.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC news,
1 July 2025
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The Gulf Cooperation Council was formed in 1981 as an alliance of the Gulf Arab monarchies in response to growing regional instability, including revolutionary Iran and the Iran-Iraq War.—
Dina Esfandiary,
Time,
1 July 2025
Noun
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Your bombastic attacks on the free press are, at best, unflattering — and at worst, undermine a core tenet of democracy.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
29 June 2025
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Mamdani has all but clinched the nomination after Cuomo conceded the race this week, and because of his Democratic Socialist label and controversial proposals, billionaires have rushed to paint the young politician as a threat to business, democracy, and the Democratic Party.—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
28 June 2025
Noun
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But a slave mentality remains deeply ingrained in Russian minds, along with a latent monarchism and paternalism.—
Nikita Petrov,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Dec. 2017
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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
Noun
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More than translation Spanish Jews who refused to convert in 1492, meanwhile, had been forced into exile and barred from the kingdom’s colonies.—
Flora Cassen,
The Conversation,
27 June 2025
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Over the course of 12 episodes and a sequel special, viewers see the decimation of a kingdom at the hand of a flesh-eating virus, and survivors can only fend off the undead with armor, swords, bows, and arrows.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
26 June 2025
Noun
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But just as important to the Poles living under Soviet dictatorship were art books, fashion magazines, religious texts, lighthearted novels and regular newspapers.—
Valorie Castellanos Clark,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2025
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Nearly 50 years into an unwanted dictatorship, Iranians have developed a refined capacity for identifying bad faith.—
Shervin Malekzadeh,
Mercury News,
26 June 2025
Noun
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The ignorant need cultural immersion at the American Museum of the Cuban Diaspora, which tells the story of those who fled the Cuban island that went from a free, prosperous republic to an oppressive, impoverished dictatorship within a single generation.—
Luka Ladan,
New York Daily News,
5 July 2025
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France has meandered through five republics and two empires.—
The Editors,
National Review,
4 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Theocracy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/theocracy. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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