dictator
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dictator
- /dɪkˈteɪtə/ UK
- /ˈdɪkˌteɪtəɹ/ US
- [-ɾəɹ] US
- /ˌdɪkˈteɪtəɹ/ US, dated
Sounds like dictater · Rhymes with -eɪtə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Latin dictātor (“a chief magistrate”), from dictō (“dictate, prescribe”), from dīcō (“say, speak”). By surface analysis, dictate + -or, literally “one who dictates”. Compare Old English tictator (“absolute ruler of the Roman Republic”).
noun dictators · dictatour
- An authoritarian leader of a country, nation, or government. The Dominicans had lived for thirty years under the iron-fisted rule of dictator Leonidas Trujillo. During those years, which ended with Trujillo's assassination in 1961, those who opposed Trujillo had three choices: to go into exile, to go underground, or to remain quiet. Most Dominicans had chosen
- A magistrate without colleague in republican Ancient Rome, who held full executive authority for a term granted by the Senate, typically to conduct a war.
- A tyrannical boss or authority figure.
- Misspelling of dictater
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: authoritarian, potentate, autocrat, tyrant, dictatorship, president, premier, defector, bully, ruler, hussein, oppressor, strongman, absolutist, despot, caesar
Translations
Every language
noun authoritarian leader of a dictatorship
| Español | dictador, dictadora |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 독재자 dokjaeja |
| 日本語 | 独裁者 dokusaisha |
| 中文 | 獨裁者 /独裁者 dúcáizhě |
| हिन्दी | तानाशाह tānāśāh, अधिनायक adhināyak |
| Kiswahili | dikteta |
| Português | ditador, ditadora |
| Français | dictateur, dictatrice |
| Deutsch | Diktator, Diktatorin |
| Italiano | dittatore, dittatrice |
| Ελληνικά | δικτάτορας diktátoras |
| Română | dictator |
| Русский | дикта́тор diktátor |
| Tiếng Việt | kẻ độc tài, nhà độc tài |
| العربية | دِكْتَاتُور diktātūr, دِكْتَاتُورَة diktātūra |
| עברית | דִיקטָטוֹר, דיקטאטור diktátor, רוֹדָן rodán |
noun tyrannical boss, or authority figure
| हिन्दी | अधिनायक adhināyak |
|---|---|
| Kiswahili | dikteta |
| Português | ditador |
| Ελληνικά | δικτάτορας diktátoras |
| Русский | дикта́тор diktátor |
Talk about this word "dictator." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/dictator. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. dictator. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/dictator "dictator." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/dictator.Cite this
@misc{dictator_2026,
title = {dictator},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/dictator},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
