Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Showing results for despotism. Search instead for despotisms.
Definitions

despotism

[des-puh-tiz-uhm] / ˈdɛs pəˌtɪz əm /
NOUN
absolute power
Synonyms
Antonyms
STRONGEST


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

We face the tyranny of ubiquitous pleasure, of easy comfort—the soft despotism of “Brave New World,” not the brutal authoritarianism of “1984.”

From The Wall Street Journal May 8, 2026

However, the party said it was proud that Tchiroma Bakary could find "safe sanctuary" in The Gambia, adding that it was fully aware of how "despotism operates and how dissenters are treated".

From BBC Nov. 24, 2025

I had spent time in Iraq and knew so many Iraqis like Salam who had suffered under his despotism — and who wanted him gone.

From Seattle Times Mar. 24, 2023

Their devotion to Slowick meanwhile, hovers between that of a proletarian army in revolt against its oppressors and the legions of the undead commanded by figures of aristocratic despotism such as Dracula.

From Salon Dec. 17, 2022

Prison administration couldn’t help being a despotism, but it could be an enlightened one.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover




Vocabulary lists containing despotism


Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training