tyranny

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: B2 — Upper-Intermediate

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or opposition etc.)
  2. noun dominance through threat of punishment and violence

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English tirannye, from Old French tyrannie, from Medieval Latin tyrannia, tyrania, from Ancient Greek τυραννία (turannía, “tyranny”), from τύραννος (túrannos, “lord, master, sovereign, tyrant”).

In classic literature

Synonyms

dictatorship, absolutism, authoritarianism, Caesarism, despotism, monocracy, one-man rule, shogunate, Stalinism, totalitarianism

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