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View synonyms for

dictator

[ dik-tey-ter, dik-tey-ter ]

noun

  1. a person exercising absolute power, especially a ruler who has absolute, unrestricted control in a government without hereditary succession.
  2. (in ancient Rome) a person invested with supreme authority during a crisis, the regular magistracy being subordinated to him until the crisis was met.
  3. a person who authoritatively prescribes conduct, usage, etc.:

    a dictator of fashion.

  4. a person who dictates, as to a secretary.


dictator

/ dɪkˈteɪtə; dɪkˈteɪtrɪs; ˈdɪktətrɪks /

noun

    1. a ruler who is not effectively restricted by a constitution, laws, recognized opposition, etc
    2. an absolute, esp tyrannical, ruler
  1. (in ancient Rome) a person appointed during a crisis to exercise supreme authority
  2. a person who makes pronouncements, as on conduct, fashion, etc, which are regarded as authoritative
  3. a person who behaves in an authoritarian or tyrannical manner
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • dictatress, noun:feminine
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Word History and Origins

Origin of dictator1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin 徱ٴǰ, from 徱() “to say repeatedly, prescribe, order” ( dictate ) + -tor -tor
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Zelenskyy says in the April 13 episode after seeing a clip of Trump calling him a dictator.

From

More than half the population of Crimea was Russian, mainly because the original majority population of Crimean Tatars were deported under Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in 1944.

From

He has paused military aid, denounced Zelenksy as a "dictator", and has accused Ukraine of being responsible for the war.

From

Ordinary rebels — even ones born from boozehounds — taking down a dictator are inspirational.

From

Commentators sometimes compare dictators to Herod, the king who ordered the massacre of children in his quest to kill the infant Christ.

From

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