despotism
English
Etymology
From French despotisme; equivalent to despot + -ism.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈdɛspətɪzəm/
Audio (US) (file)
Noun
despotism (countable and uncountable, plural despotisms)
- government by a singular authority, either a single person or tight-knit group, which rules with absolute power, especially in a cruel and oppressive way.
- 1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Romance and Reality. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], OCLC 24531354, page 136:
- The iron hand of despotism has quenched the last spark of liberty; hunted down like a wild beast, I am watching an opportunity to fly my degraded and enslaved country.
- 1992 March 30, Richard Nixon, Richard Nixon on "Inside Washington", Richard Nixon Foundation, 4:50 from the start:
- But now events have proved that I was right because Khrushchev's grandchildren do live in freedom and the great question of our time: can they continue to live in freedom, or will they revert to the old, or a new despotism?
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Synonyms
- tyranny
Related terms
- despot
- despotate
- despotic
Translations
government by a singular authority
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Anagrams
- misposted
Romanian
Etymology
From French despotisme.
Noun
despotism n (uncountable)
- despotism
Declension
declension of despotism (singular only)
singular | ||
---|---|---|
n gender | indefinite articulation | definite articulation |
nominative/accusative | (un) despotism | despotismul |
genitive/dative | (unui) despotism | despotismului |
vocative | despotismule |