as in tyranny
a system of government in which the ruler has unlimited power
concerning absolutism Lord Acton famously observed that "absolute power corrupts absolutely"
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Recent Examples of absolutism
The result, in 1906, was the movement known as the Constitutional Revolution, which established a parliamentary system and brought about a short pause in Iran’s long history of absolutism.
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Amir A. Afkhami, Foreign Affairs, 2 Mar. 2020
This moral absolutism is antithetical to the university’s goal of advancing knowledge and critical inquiry.
—Jeffrey Koseff, Washington Post, 8 July 2024
Indeed, the century that followed Hobbes, the heyday of Enlightenment philosophy and science, is often known as the era of enlightened absolutism.
—John M. Owen Iv, Foreign Affairs, 10 Aug. 2015
Yet Republicans have often ignored those calls as Second Amendment absolutism has spread, anchored by key Supreme Court decisions.
—Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for absolutism 
Amir A. Afkhami, Foreign Affairs, 2 Mar. 2020
This moral absolutism is antithetical to the university’s goal of advancing knowledge and critical inquiry.
—Jeffrey Koseff, Washington Post, 8 July 2024
Indeed, the century that followed Hobbes, the heyday of Enlightenment philosophy and science, is often known as the era of enlightened absolutism.
—John M. Owen Iv, Foreign Affairs, 10 Aug. 2015
Yet Republicans have often ignored those calls as Second Amendment absolutism has spread, anchored by key Supreme Court decisions.
—Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for absolutism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for absolutism
Noun
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It's mainly made up of former and current law enforcement, former and current military, and these people see themselves as the last line of defense against government tyranny.Dana Taylor, USA TODAY, 31 Oct. 2024
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Finally, Gibney breaks away from nonstop Sopranos worship for secondhand memories of Gandolfini’s personal struggles on the series — the mixture of pressure and addiction — and Chase’s transition into some level of occasional tyranny.Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Sep. 2024
Noun
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His thirty-two-year hard-line dictatorship witnessed political assassinations and the violent suppression of human rights by his army.Hung Duong, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2024
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The peace plan tried to secure Arab recognition of Israel’s 1967 conquests, in exchange for more American aid and arms sales to the brutal Egyptian, Saudi and Emirati dictatorships.Caise D. Hassan, Chicago Tribune, 31 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Forcible suppression of opposition is a key component in fascism.David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
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The Parisian Surrealists emerged amid the fresh traumas of World War I, the alienation of rapid industrialization, and the horrors of rising fascism.Jack Denton, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2024
Noun
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To start a new movement, Tunisia’s civil society and its politicians must rebuild trust with the people and convince them, fundamentally, that democracy is more likely than autocracy to bring about the economic growth and stability the country needs.Sarah E. Yerkes, Foreign Affairs, 4 Nov. 2024
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Yet this cooperation masks divisions among the world’s major autocracies.Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 3 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Although Adolf Hitler met his road to perdition, Joseph Stalin survived and extended his despotism.Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2024
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His thug military’s attacks — and those of his thug street enforcers known as colectivos — on Venezuelans who’ve taken to the streets to protest his Gómez-ish despotism?Tim Padgett, Orlando Sentinel, 9 Aug. 2024
Noun
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Mann understood the appeal of totalitarianism early on.George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
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In 1984, Apple released a TV ad suggesting that its new Macintosh would topple Orwellian totalitarianism.Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Absolutism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/absolutism. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.
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