dictatorship
noun
dic·ta·tor·ship
dik-ˈtā-tər-ˌship 
ˈdik-ˌtā-
1
: the office of dictator
2
: autocratic rule, control, or leadership
people suffering under his dictatorship
3
a
: a form of government in which absolute power is concentrated in a dictator or a small clique
Communism and dictatorship
b
: a government organization or group in which absolute power is so concentrated
rising up against a military dictatorship
c
: a despotic state
establishing a dictatorship
Examples of dictatorship in a Sentence
The country suffered for many years under his dictatorship.
His enemies accused him of establishing a dictatorship.
Recent Examples on the Web
His parents, Marcelo Netto and Miriam Leitão, are both journalists who resisted the dictatorship and were persecuted.
—
Marcelo Cajueiro, Variety, 27 May 2025
Nicaraguan journalists, exiled in Costa Rica because of the dictatorship at home, launched a crowdfunding campaign following the U.S. cuts.
—Nelson Mauricio Rauda Zablah, Christian Science Monitor, 23 May 2025
Men and women respond to the Nazi dictatorship by becoming, at best, evasive and feebly self-justifying, at worst, morally broken.
—David Denby, New Yorker, 23 May 2025
The 19th-century pope refused to endorse either the capitalists’ wait-and-see promise of progress or the communists’ longing for a dictatorship of the proletariat.
—Nathan Schneider, The Conversation, 21 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for dictatorship
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Marcelo Cajueiro, Variety, 27 May 2025
Nicaraguan journalists, exiled in Costa Rica because of the dictatorship at home, launched a crowdfunding campaign following the U.S. cuts.
—Nelson Mauricio Rauda Zablah, Christian Science Monitor, 23 May 2025
Men and women respond to the Nazi dictatorship by becoming, at best, evasive and feebly self-justifying, at worst, morally broken.
—David Denby, New Yorker, 23 May 2025
The 19th-century pope refused to endorse either the capitalists’ wait-and-see promise of progress or the communists’ longing for a dictatorship of the proletariat.
—Nathan Schneider, The Conversation, 21 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for dictatorship
Cite this Entry
“Dictatorship.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dictatorship. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dictatorship
noun
dic·ta·tor·ship
dik-ˈtāt-ər-ˌship
ˈdik-ˌtāt-
1
: the office of a dictator
2
: rule, control, or leadership by one person with total power
3
: a government or country in which total power is held by a dictator or a small group
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share