1
as in domineering
fond of ordering people around
grew up with an authoritarian older sister who thought she was queen of the world
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in strict
given to exacting standards of discipline and self-restraint
an authoritarian coach who runs football practice like it's boot camp
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in disciplinarian
Related Words
2
as in dictator
Related Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of authoritarian
Yoonjung Seo, CNN Money, 1 Aug. 2025
North Korea is under sanctions from the United States — as well as the United Nations and several other countries — largely in response to the isolated authoritarian state's weapons programs.
—Alana Wise, NPR, 25 July 2025
While Western democracies debate environmental reviews and grid reliability, authoritarian systems can rapidly direct energy flows to computing infrastructure.
—Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 25 July 2025
Congress has been sidelined by an increasingly authoritarian Executive and is already showing its fatigue.
—Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for authoritarian
Noun
At the time, South Korea was recovering from grinding post-war poverty, and records show a notable increase in international adoptions as the country’s authoritarian rulers pushed for rapid economic growth in the 1970s and ’80s.
—Yoonjung Seo, CNN Money, 1 Aug. 2025
North Korea is under sanctions from the United States — as well as the United Nations and several other countries — largely in response to the isolated authoritarian state's weapons programs.
—Alana Wise, NPR, 25 July 2025
While Western democracies debate environmental reviews and grid reliability, authoritarian systems can rapidly direct energy flows to computing infrastructure.
—Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 25 July 2025
Congress has been sidelined by an increasingly authoritarian Executive and is already showing its fatigue.
—Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for authoritarian
Recent Examples of Synonyms for authoritarian
Adjective
-
Avoid being domineering, but also avoid being stepped on by someone else.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
25 July 2025
-
My Mom Died is a heartbreaking and hilarious recounting of McCurdy’s struggles as a former child actor while dealing with her overbearing, domineering mother.—
Charley Ross,
Glamour,
2 July 2025
Adjective
-
The widespread destruction triggered stricter building codes across the state.—
Susannah Bryan,
Sun Sentinel,
16 Aug. 2025
-
In addition to broadening Opinel's appeal in jurisdictions with strict regulations on locking knives, the Opiflex mechanism is designed to streamline blade opening and closing for fast, intuitive knife use.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
16 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
By several accounts, Xi was a ferocious disciplinarian.—
Nicholas Creel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 June 2025
-
He was variously depicted as both a strict disciplinarian and also an emotionally intelligent father figure to the players.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
1 June 2025
Noun
-
So, this is all an opportunity for Donald Trump to play dictator in Washington, D.C.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Aug. 2025
-
Romanian dictator [Nicolae] Ceaușescu led a lot of influential and rich foreign people to come to this place close to Bucharest secretly, and one of them was Chaplin.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Depicting Americans as arrogant, loud, boorish and demeaning of other cultures, the term has stuck and is still mentioned 60-plus years later.—
Jenny Peters,
Oc Register,
4 Aug. 2025
-
The most radical overhaul of the tax code in our state’s history would require voter approval in November 2026, and that starts by portraying local governments as cartoonishly arrogant, bloated and unaccountable.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
26 July 2025
Adjective
-
The former Calle 13 member impresses her sensitivity to this piece, originally written by Orlando Brito and popularized in 1975 by the great Héctor Lavoe, giving it new life with her powerful, dramatic voice, accompanied by street guitars and harsh, aggressive chords that captivate the listener.—
Jessica Roiz,
Billboard,
15 Aug. 2025
-
While the comparison of slave babies being taken from their mommas, and immigrant children being separated from their parents might seem a bit harsh to some, the pain is the same.—
Bea L. Hines,
Miami Herald,
15 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
But Muir’s co-moderator, Linsey Davis, was a different case: Davis wore a mannish, gray suit jacket and struck a pose of martinet — almost schoolmarmish — solemnity.—
Armond White,
National Review,
20 Sep. 2024
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There’s Cece’s father, long vanished; Ronnie, a predator; Marcel, a martinet; Joel, a manipulator; and a random catcaller in the street, whom Cece sends scurrying away by turning her acting skills to practical use.—
Richard Brody,
The New Yorker,
12 June 2024
Noun
-
President Trump is, once again, testing the limits of his power, hoping to intimidate other cities into submission to his every vengeful whim by making the once unimaginable—an American tyrant ordering a military occupation of our own capital—a terrifying reality.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Aug. 2025
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Jack Nicholson’s McMurphy, a swaggering trickster figure, clashes with the institution’s quiet tyrant, Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher), in a battle not just of wills, but of worldviews: chaos versus order, freedom versus conformity.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
29 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Authoritarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/authoritarian. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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