Not your grandma’s authoritarians Today’s authoritarian rulers realize that civil society has the potential to support democracy and pry loose their grip on power.
—
Christopher Justin Einolf,
The Conversation,
26 Sep. 2025
Even as long-reigning autocrats such as Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are removed from power, the outlook for the global state of democracy remains highly uncertain.
—
Yana Gorokhovskaia,
Washington Post,
19 Mar. 2026
Trump’s attacks may have raised some doubts in China that Xi’s backing of autocrats is wise.
Biden put this sentiment into action by working with Netanyahu despite serious moral and political failures in Gaza, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on NATO expansion, and with Gulf potentates on the region’s security architecture.
Ready to meet the season's new allies, enemies, tyrants, and giants?
—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Mar. 2026
At the time, Athens had just emerged from a period of dictatorship and some of his students had been among the tyrants who sought to take down Athens’ democracy.
Imperatori-Lee said that global reach gave him a first-hand perspective on how Washington’s economic and military policies — including backing dictators in Latin America — have negatively affected less powerful nations and their citizens.
—
Bill Barrow,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
Imperatori-Lee said that global reach gave him a first-hand perspective on how Washington's economic and military policies — including backing dictators in Latin America — have negatively affected less powerful nations and their citizens.
Thus, to be real peace-makers, whether Christian or not, responsible leaders need to be aware that the approach of pacifism often paves the way for dictators and despots to inflict more and more violence.
—
Bill Keane,
Hartford Courant,
15 Mar. 2026
These despots will continue to lash out at America.
—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
4 Mar. 2026
During the confrontation, Hussein and his followers were massacred, but the imam’s quest for justice became a defining value of Shiite identity, fostering a sense of revolutionary duty to fight oppressors at any cost.
—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
7 Apr. 2026
For Iran, what counts is resistance, against arrogant and wicked oppressors, chiefly the United States and Israel.
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.