oligarchic

adjective

ol·​i·​gar·​chic ˌä-lə-ˈgär-kik 

ˌō-

variants or oligarchical

ˌä-lə-ˈgär-ki-kəl 

ˌō-

: of, relating to, or based on an oligarchy

Examples of oligarchic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Behind them is a coterie of billionaires pushing for more oligarchic control of America (among them, Peter Thiel, Blake Masters, tech entrepreneur David Sacks, Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, Palantir adviser Jacob Helberg, and Sequoia Capital’s Doug Leone). —Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 29 Jan. 2025

Donald Trump goes low, Elon Musk goes Sieg heil!, and Mark Zuckerberg goes so macho January 25, 2025 Reading Time: 5 minutes The intense run-up to oligarchic rule was reflected in our poll results, as many of the system’s most fervent supporters (that is, oligarchs) continued to strut and crow. —airmail.news, 25 Jan. 2025

Lauren Sanchez once again found a way to showcase her famous assets while accompanying her fiancé Jeff Bezos to a high-profile event, this time when the couple joined other Silicon Valley tech CEOs doing their oligarchic power flex at Donald Trump’s inauguration. —Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 21 Jan. 2025

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, American critics have rightly described Russia as an oligarchic state. —David Remnick, The New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, Medieval Latin & Greek; French oligarchique, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Medieval Latin oligarchicus, borrowed from Greek oligarchikós, from oligarchía oligarchy + -ikos -ic entry 1

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined above