variants
also tyrannic
1
as in oppressive
exercising power or authority without interference by others
a tyrannical ruler whose terrible reign was marked by unceasing violence
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in domineering
fond of ordering people around
even when he was still a toddler, he tended to be a tyrannical playmate
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tyrannical
The citizens of Venezuela don't deserve to live under the tyrannical rule of Maduro or any of his henchmen!
—
Dan Gooding
gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
Watch The Lost Daughter on Netflix The King Prince Hal (Timothée Chalamet), the heir to the English throne, wants nothing to do with royal life and is living among commoners when his tyrannical father dies.
—Alex Gurley, People.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The over-the-top propaganda that leads the game off suggests the Earth Directorate is here to protect colonists from out-of-control corporations and tyrannical governments.
—Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 27 Aug. 2025
The result is a gripping vérité portrait of citizens under siege by a tyrannical leader stripping away their freedoms.
—Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 13 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tyrannical
Dan Gooding
gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
Watch The Lost Daughter on Netflix The King Prince Hal (Timothée Chalamet), the heir to the English throne, wants nothing to do with royal life and is living among commoners when his tyrannical father dies.
—Alex Gurley, People.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The over-the-top propaganda that leads the game off suggests the Earth Directorate is here to protect colonists from out-of-control corporations and tyrannical governments.
—Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 27 Aug. 2025
The result is a gripping vérité portrait of citizens under siege by a tyrannical leader stripping away their freedoms.
—Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 13 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tyrannical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tyrannical
Adjective
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After a summer of oppressive heat, October is when New York City hits its stride.—
Nicole Kliest,
Vogue,
18 Oct. 2025
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Raducanu had her blood pressure taken during the match, which was played in oppressive heat and humidity, before retiring down 6-1, 4-1.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Her anxiety stems from her domineering mother (Barbara Hershey) and rival dancer (Mila Kunis) who may or may not be after her part in the ballet.—
Steven Thrash,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Oct. 2025
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And one of the reasons the film doesn’t succeed is Meryl Streep’s grotesque performance as the filterless, domineering matriarch.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
10 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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This feels more important than ever in a world that tries to normalize genocide and climate catastrophe as the inevitable outcome of ongoing and increasingly authoritarian imperialist projects.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Oct. 2025
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In all of our studies, this mindset was also strongly associated with authoritarian attitudes, including beliefs that some groups should dominate others and support for autocratic government.—
Abraham Rutchick,
The Conversation,
15 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Thanks to the masterful intervention of designer Petr Grigorash, the vintage decor of this 807-square-foot home in a small village near Como offers a fresh interpretation of a certain Northern Italian classicism.—
Valentina Raggi,
Architectural Digest,
20 Oct. 2025
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The first Universal Frankenstein movie to be produced after James Whale’s masterful diptych loses Colin Clive as Henry Frankenstein, jumping ahead to his adult son Wolf (Basil Rathbone) returning to his ancestral home, where the resentful villagers give him the cold shoulder.—
Rory Doherty,
Vulture,
20 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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In all of our studies, this mindset was also strongly associated with authoritarian attitudes, including beliefs that some groups should dominate others and support for autocratic government.—
Abraham Rutchick,
The Conversation,
15 Oct. 2025
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The meeting in Beijing is the latest of several high-profile gatherings hosted by China in recent months, including a major summit of mostly autocratic leaders in August followed by a mammoth military parade days later.—
Prashant Rao,
semafor.com,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Especially right now, when most of whatever happens next would seem to be determined by arbitrary and despotic centers of earthly power.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
7 Oct. 2025
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The emergency has become the rule, transforming exceptional powers into the ordinary machinery of despotic governance.—
Beatriz Magaloni,
Foreign Affairs,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The trend's noon cutoff is also arbitrary, and while the habits are beneficial, the timing and exact numbers may not suit everyone's needs or lifestyles — and may not always be possible.—
Deirdre Bardolf,
FOXNews.com,
19 Oct. 2025
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Anchor your investments Anchoring happens when investors fixate on an arbitrary reference point.—
Chris Stevens,
Nashville Tennessean,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The meeting was especially notable considering Putin’s long-standing backing of Al-Sharaa’s predecessor, Bashar al-Assad, whose dictatorial regime was ousted by rebel forces in December.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
15 Oct. 2025
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The film tells the story of political prisoner Luis Molina (Tonatiuh), a man imprisoned for his homosexuality under a dictatorial regime in 1980s Argentina.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tyrannical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tyrannical. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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