to·tal·i·tar·i·an
(ˌ)tō-ˌta-lə-ˈter-ē-ən 
1
a
: of or relating to centralized control by an autocratic leader or hierarchy : authoritarian, dictatorial
especially
: despotic
b
: of or relating to a political regime based on subordination of the individual to the state and strict control of all aspects of the life and productive capacity of the nation especially by coercive measures (such as censorship and terrorism)
2
a
: advocating or characteristic of totalitarianism
b
: completely regulated by the state especially as an aid to national mobilization in an emergency
c
: exercising autocratic powers
: an advocate or practitioner of totalitarianism
Examples of totalitarian in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2024
King’s Running Man, published in 1982 and written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, was set in 2025 in an America under a totalitarian regime that uses violent game shows to placate the disenfranchised masses.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Oct. 2024
Letters To The Editor, Orange County Register, 17 Oct. 2020
Under the unconditional patronage of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kadyrov rules his republic as a totalitarian, and has done so since taking power in May 2004, after his father, then President Akhmad Kadyrov, was assassinated.
—Layla Taimienova, Foreign Affairs, 10 May 2017
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Adjective
Language, in 1984, is violence by another means, an adjunct of the totalitarian strategies inflicted by the regime.
—Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2024
King’s Running Man, published in 1982 and written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, was set in 2025 in an America under a totalitarian regime that uses violent game shows to placate the disenfranchised masses.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Oct. 2024
Noun
Ridicule only appeals to cool kids on coasts and the college towns and totalitarians.
—Letters To The Editor, Orange County Register, 17 Oct. 2020
Under the unconditional patronage of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kadyrov rules his republic as a totalitarian, and has done so since taking power in May 2004, after his father, then President Akhmad Kadyrov, was assassinated.
—Layla Taimienova, Foreign Affairs, 10 May 2017
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Cite this Entry
“Totalitarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/totalitarian. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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