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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Recent Examples of tyrannical
And what can today’s resistance movements facing tyrannical regimes learn from their success?
—
John Blake, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2025
Howard plays himself as a tyrannical auteur who petulantly refuses to cut a vacuous scene from his overlong thriller, warding off pleas only to change his mind at the moment of truth.
—Peter Bart, Deadline, 10 Apr. 2025
Leaders who take this approach have a tyrannical, dictatorial style.
—Kevin Kruse, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025
Now that’s someone who’ll shake up Alan Cumming’s tyrannical rule.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tyrannical
John Blake, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2025
Howard plays himself as a tyrannical auteur who petulantly refuses to cut a vacuous scene from his overlong thriller, warding off pleas only to change his mind at the moment of truth.
—Peter Bart, Deadline, 10 Apr. 2025
Leaders who take this approach have a tyrannical, dictatorial style.
—Kevin Kruse, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025
Now that’s someone who’ll shake up Alan Cumming’s tyrannical rule.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tyrannical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tyrannical
Adjective
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That this sincere notion dovetails with an itch to vacate her dour, oppressive home only adds to her determination.—
Robert Abele,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Apr. 2025
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To be sure, Florida had its attractions, one of which was the sunny weather, although air conditioning was still rare at the time, and the heat and humidity could be oppressive for much of the year.—
Greg Daugherty,
Smithsonian Magazine,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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As mild-mannered schoolteacher Mr. Lisbon, James Woods plays a quiet counterpoint to his domineering wife.—
Sezin Devi Koehler,
EW.com,
21 Apr. 2025
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Among them towers the frighteningly domineering Honoria Glossop.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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From 2019 to 2020, the authoritarian petrostate paid $115,000 a month to now–Attorney General Pam Bondi and her firm to lobby on its behalf.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
15 May 2025
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The congressman sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s foreign policy, accusing him of prioritizing personal spectacle and showing admiration for authoritarian leaders.—
Heather Hunter,
The Washington Examiner,
14 May 2025
Adjective
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The look was designed by Tolu Coker, a British-Nigerian designer celebrated for masterful tailoring that fuses masculine aesthetics with feminine silhouettes, brought to life through loud, vivid patterns.—
Essence,
Essence,
9 May 2025
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Draymond Green scored early and orchestrated the Warriors’ masterful defense, coach Steve Kerr adapted on the fly and Jimmy Butler led the offense down the stretch.—
Pueng Vongs,
Mercury News,
8 May 2025
Adjective
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In some cases, strongmen crave popular support, so the popular will can sustains autocratic stability.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
1 May 2025
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Jam Sta Rosa/AFP via Getty Images Threatening to strip licenses from TV news broadcasters Journalist Maria Ressa says Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippines' autocratic former president, used similar tactics.—
Frank Langfitt,
NPR,
1 May 2025
Adjective
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Photo: Obscured Pictures Building the world of the film also meant drawing on all manner of cultural references—from the depths of the Vice News YouTube channel to an early ’00s documentary about American Apparel and its despotic CEO, Dov Charney, that Ulman sent to Simon Rex.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
2 May 2025
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In these ways, Trump’s despotic acts are indeed without precedent in American history.—
Patrick Eddington,
Oc Register,
20 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Even the country’s closest democratic allies and largest trading partners, Canada and Mexico, faced ridicule, seemingly arbitrary import tax rates, and threats of territorial ambition.—
Michael Wilner,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2025
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Volkswagen, meanwhile, had its own arbitrary rules, limiting subpoenas to fewer than seven days’ worth of data.—
Dell Cameron,
Wired News,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Compared with Russia’s dictatorial tsarist and communist eras and its chaotic decade after the Soviet Union fell, the country had never been so prosperous and so free at the same time.—
ALEXANDER GABUEV,
Foreign Affairs,
17 Apr. 2025
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Fortunately, the courts have so far blocked this dictatorial impulse.—
Steven Greenhut,
Orange County Register,
16 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tyrannical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tyrannical. Accessed 18 May. 2025.
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