despotism en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈdɛspətɪzəm/
- (US) audio
Etymology
From French despotisme; equivalent to despot + -ism.
Meanings
-
(countable, uncountable) Government by a despot or despots: rule by a singular authority, either a single person or a tight-knit group, which rules with absolute power, especially in a cruel and oppressive way.
The iron hand of despotism has quenched the last spark of liberty; hunted down like a wild beast, I am watching an opportunity to fly my degraded and enslaved country.
1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter VII, in Romance and Reality. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 136:But now events have proved that I was right because Khrushchev's grandchildren do live in freedom and the great question of our time: can they continue to live in freedom, or will they revert to the old, or a new despotism?
1992 March 30, Richard Nixon, 4:50 from the start, in Richard Nixon on "Inside Washington", Richard Nixon Foundation, retrieved 25 May 2020:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| despotisms | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Hyponyms
benevolent absolutism · enlightened despotism · absolute monarchy · enlightened absolutism
Relateds
Synonyms
absolutism · autocracy · tyranny · dictatorship
Translations (89)
lt despotizmas (government by a singular authority) · az despotizm (government by a singular authority) · sl despotizem (government by a singular authority) · eu despotismo (government by a singular authority) · is harðstjórn (government by a singular authority) · he רוֹדָנוּת (government by a singular authority) · hy բռնակալություն (government by a singular authority) · cmn 獨裁 /独裁 (government by a singular authority) · ko 폭정 (government by a singular authority) · tr istibdat (government by a singular authority) · ko 독재 (government by a singular authority) · fi itsevaltius (government by a singular authority) · ro despotism (government by a singular authority) · ka დესპოტიზმი (government by a singular authority) · cmn 暴政 (government by a singular authority) · fa ظلم (government by a singular authority) · de Willkürherrschaft (government by a singular authority) · et despotism (government by a singular authority) · ga tíorántacht (government by a singular authority) · ar ظُلْم (government by a singular authority) · id despotisme (government by a singular authority) · pa ਧੱਕੇਸ਼ਾਹੀ (government by a singular authority) · ja 暴政 (government by a singular authority) · fr despotisme (government by a singular authority) · ca despotisme (government by a singular authority) · ru деспоти́зм (government by a singular authority) · az zülm (government by a singular authority) · sv despotism (government by a singular authority) · hy բռնապետություն (government by a singular authority) · ms despotisme (government by a singular authority) · ru произво́л (government by a singular authority) · nb despoti (government by a singular authority) · ru деспоти́я (government by a singular authority) · ast despotismu (government by a singular authority) · fa استبداد (government by a singular authority) · eo despotismo (government by a singular authority) · de Despotie (government by a singular authority) · hi तानाशाही (government by a singular authority) · uz istibdod (government by a singular authority) · be дэспаты́зм (government by a singular authority) · ja 専制 (government by a singular authority) · bg деспоти́зъм (government by a singular authority) · ota ظلم (government by a singular authority) · id istibdad (government by a singular authority) · io despoteso (government by a singular authority) · ja 独裁 (government by a singular authority) · vo däspot (government by a singular authority) · tr despotizm (government by a singular authority) · cs despocie (government by a singular authority) · pl despotyzm (government by a singular authority) · es despotismo (government by a singular authority) · ar اِسْتِبْدَاد (government by a singular authority) · hu despotizmus (government by a singular authority) · ja 独裁主義 (government by a singular authority) · yue 專制政體 /专制政体 (government by a singular authority) · kk деспотизм (government by a singular authority) · gl despotismo (government by a singular authority) · la despotismus (government by a singular authority) · ga smachtúlacht (government by a singular authority) · sk despotizmus (government by a singular authority) · pt despotismo (government by a singular authority) · az istibdad (government by a singular authority) · cmn 專制 /专制 (government by a singular authority) · nl despotisme (government by a singular authority) · mk деспоти́зам (government by a singular authority) · tg зулм (government by a singular authority) · da despoti (government by a singular authority) · ur اِسْتِبْدَاد (government by a singular authority) · sv despoti (government by a singular authority) · sq despotizëm (government by a singular authority) · cs despotismus (government by a singular authority) · cmn 專制主義 /专制主义 (government by a singular authority) · ko 전제 (government by a singular authority) · sh despotìzam (government by a singular authority) · uz despotiya (government by a singular authority) · uz zulm (government by a singular authority) · it dispotismo (government by a singular authority) · uk деспоти́зм (government by a singular authority) · hi स्वेच्छाचारिता (government by a singular authority) · lv despotisms (government by a singular authority) · de Despotismus (government by a singular authority) · xmf დესპოტიზმი (government by a singular authority) · kmr istibdad (government by a singular authority) · sh деспотѝзам (government by a singular authority) · el δεσποτισμός (government by a singular authority) · ga forlámhas (government by a singular authority) · th ระบบใช้อำนาจเด็ดขาด (government by a singular authority) · tg истибдод (government by a singular authority) · nn despoti (government by a singular authority)