Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Unjust or oppressive governmental power.
- noun A government in which a single ruler is vested with absolute power.
- noun The office, authority, or jurisdiction of an absolute ruler.
- noun The oppressive or unjust use of power.
- noun A tyrannical act.
- noun An oppressive or harshly limiting condition.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun The rule of a tyrant in the ancient sense; the personal government of one of the Greek tyrants; a state or government having an uncontrolled ruler bearing the title of tyrant.
- noun The office or incumbency of a tyrant; a tyrant's administration or tenure; the system of government by tyrants.
- noun Hence A tyrannical government; a lawless autocracy or despotism.
- noun Arbitrary or unrestrained exercise of power; despotic abuse of anthority; unmerciful rule.
- noun A tyrannical action or proceeding; an instance of despotic rule or conduct.
- noun Severity; harshness; stringency.
- noun Synonyms Despotism, Autocracy, etc. See
despotism . - noun Oppression, Despotism, etc. See
oppression .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The government or authority of a tyrant; a country governed by an absolute ruler; hence, arbitrary or despotic exercise of power; exercise of power over subjects and others with a rigor not authorized by law or justice, or not requisite for the purposes of government.
- noun Cruel government or discipline.
- noun Severity; rigor; inclemency.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
government in which asingle ruler (atyrant ) hasabsolute power . - noun The
office orjurisdiction of an absoluteruler . - noun Absolute
power , or its use. - noun
Extreme severity orrigour .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or opposition etc.)
- noun dominance through threat of punishment and violence
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word tyranny.
Examples
-
One reason is what we call the "tyranny of the shoulds."
Barbara & Shannon Kelley: Are Women "Pornified" by Popular Media? Barbara 2011
-
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has paid tribute to seven French soldiers killed last week in Afghanistan, saying they fought in a just war against what he called the "tyranny" of the Taliban movement.
Sarkozy: French Troops Killed in Afghanistan Fought Taliban's 'Tyranny' 2011
-
One reason is what we call the "tyranny of the shoulds."
Barbara & Shannon Kelley: Are Women "Pornified" by Popular Media? Barbara 2011
-
This introduces what I call the tyranny of choice.
Marketing In Crisis 2006
-
People always think that living in a tyranny is a cohesive experience.
The Fiction of Life 2003
-
People always think that living in a tyranny is a cohesive experience.
The Fiction of Life 2003
-
But both Bonaparte and his Minister in the affairs of the Church, Portalis, refused the introduction of what they called a tyranny on the conscience.
Complete Project Gutenberg Collection of Memoirs of Napoleon Various
-
But both Bonaparte and his Minister in the affairs of the Church, Portalis, refused the introduction of what they called a tyranny on the conscience.
-
An autocracy or a tyranny is a far simpler form of social and political organization than a democracy.
Is Democracy Outworn 1937
-
Once there, he began to notice what he described as the "tyranny of the moment" mindset among low-income families and others living below the poverty line.
The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com The Huffington Post News Editors 2011
raavan commented on the word tyranny
aristocracy vs monarchy vs democracy
November 15, 2009