as in dictator
a person who uses power or authority in a cruel, unjust, or harmful way
a Latin-American strongman who basically treated his nation's coffers as his personal bank account
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Recent Examples of strongman
The Maduro regime released six American citizens imprisoned in Venezuela after the strongman met with Grenell on Friday.
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Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 Feb. 2025
Assad’s brutal effort to delay his downfall only left Syria even more vulnerable to a new strongman’s rise.
—Fawaz A. Gerges, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2025
And Turkey's Erdogan, an Islamist strongman and Hamas mollycoddler who harbors frightening neo-Ottoman ambitions, is emboldened like never before.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 13 Dec. 2024
Most people in the military and police know that the socialist strongman lost the election, and would side with the people if the conditions were created for a showdown, an opposition spokesperson told the Miami Herald.
—Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 11 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for strongman
Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 Feb. 2025
Assad’s brutal effort to delay his downfall only left Syria even more vulnerable to a new strongman’s rise.
—Fawaz A. Gerges, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2025
And Turkey's Erdogan, an Islamist strongman and Hamas mollycoddler who harbors frightening neo-Ottoman ambitions, is emboldened like never before.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 13 Dec. 2024
Most people in the military and police know that the socialist strongman lost the election, and would side with the people if the conditions were created for a showdown, an opposition spokesperson told the Miami Herald.
—Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 11 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for strongman
Cite this Entry
“Strongman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/strongman. Accessed 2 Mar. 2025.
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