variants
also autocratical
1
as in oppressive
exercising power or authority without interference by others
democracy is supposed to protect the people against the rise of autocratic rulers
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in authoritarian
fond of ordering people around
an autocratic Boy Scout leader who is under the delusion that he's still an army colonel
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of autocratic
That's very different than any past president would have acted toward a pro-Western, democratic ally that was invaded by a larger, autocratic regime.
—
Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 30 Apr. 2025
All talk of playbooks aside, an autocratic breakthrough is not something that any leader can order up at will, by following the same ten easy steps.
—Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
Vitruvius’s Ten Books on Architecture was not only a manual of the building arts but a treatise on how to extend and consolidate the Roman Empire, and lent itself all too well to the autocratic ambitions of Renaissance princes.
—Ingrid D. Rowland, The New York Review of Books, 24 Apr. 2025
But as Russia amped up its aggression in Ukraine, China made clear its designs on Taiwan, and the two autocratic powers deepened their ties and collaborated more closely with other U.S. rivals, few predicted that Washington would abandon competition as its guiding light.
—Stacie E. Goddard, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocratic
Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 30 Apr. 2025
All talk of playbooks aside, an autocratic breakthrough is not something that any leader can order up at will, by following the same ten easy steps.
—Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
Vitruvius’s Ten Books on Architecture was not only a manual of the building arts but a treatise on how to extend and consolidate the Roman Empire, and lent itself all too well to the autocratic ambitions of Renaissance princes.
—Ingrid D. Rowland, The New York Review of Books, 24 Apr. 2025
But as Russia amped up its aggression in Ukraine, China made clear its designs on Taiwan, and the two autocratic powers deepened their ties and collaborated more closely with other U.S. rivals, few predicted that Washington would abandon competition as its guiding light.
—Stacie E. Goddard, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for autocratic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for autocratic
Adjective
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Contracts of adhesion are sometimes seen as oppressive, especially in the consumer context, but courts often regard them as enforceable.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
20 May 2025
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The United States held Qaddafi’s Libya up as a success story in the global war on terror, a former rogue state that had made amends for its murderous past, relinquished its nuclear-weapons program and reoriented its oppressive state apparatus around American foreign-policy priorities.—
Henry Leutwyler Robert Petkoff Emma Kehlbeck Quinton Kamara,
New York Times,
20 May 2025
Adjective
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Panahi’s film, his first since being released from prison in 2023, is a direct assault on Iran’s authoritarian regime.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
24 May 2025
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But this one rush job, HB 1205, was especially dear to the governor’s authoritarian heart.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
24 May 2025
Adjective
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The scientist, more hapless than mad, must retrieve Stitch in the name of the United Galactic Federation (Hannah Waddingham voices the imperious leader).—
Michael Phillips,
Chicago Tribune,
21 May 2025
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Jones portrays Rosie, Ozzie’s imperious and authoritative momager.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
8 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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Richard was known for being outspoken, if not arrogant, consistently rubbing his Tagi tribe the wrong way and offending some of them with his blatant display of nudity on the island.—
Nick Caruso,
TVLine,
27 May 2025
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Multiple people described him to me as unpopular and arrogant.—
Amanda Chicago Lewis,
Harpers Magazine,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Coupled with his hateful rhetoric, threats, lies, erratic policies, trampling of the Constitution and abnormal fascination with childish superlatives, tyrannical figures and Soviet-era style military parades, there’s much to be concerned about.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
11 May 2025
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The Wolves rose up and defeated the tyrannical FEDRA, forcing them to abandon the quarantine zone.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Sharing these private details will be challenging, since authoritative Saturn and confusing Neptune will corner the sun over the next few days.—
Liz Simmons,
StyleCaster,
27 May 2025
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One 2022 study found that children raised with an authoritative parenting style were more likely to achieve academically.—
Madeline Holcombe,
CNN Money,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Hollywood is now under the dictatorial realm of the technology companies.—
Maer Roshan,
HollywoodReporter,
21 May 2025
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Yet before the press arrived, Trump shared a different, less equivocal message with El Salvador’s dictatorial president, Nayib Bukele, who has already built sprawling maximum-security complexes in service of Trump’s scheme to deport noncitizens out of legal reach.—
Michael Wilner,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Autocratic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autocratic. Accessed 2 Jun. 2025.
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