tyranny
English · Thesaurus
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tyranny
- /ˈtərəni/ New Zealand
- /ˈtirəni/ Singapore
- /ˈtɪɹəni/
- /ˈtaɪɹəni/ obsolete
- /ˈtɪəɹəni/ US
Rhymes with -ɪɹəni
Where it comes from
Inherited from Middle English tirannye, from Old French tyrannie, from Medieval Latin tyrannia, tyrania, from Ancient Greek τυραννία (turannía, “tyranny”), from τύραννος (túrannos, “lord, master, sovereign, tyrant”).
noun tyrannies
- A government in which a single ruler (a tyrant) has absolute power, or this system of government; especially, one that acts cruelly and unjustly.
- The office or jurisdiction of an absolute ruler.
- Absolute power, or its use.
- A system of government in which power is exercised on behalf of the ruler or ruling class, without regard to the wishes of the governed. He that with ſhepheards and a litle ſpoyle, Durſt in diſdaine of wrong and tyrannie, Defend his freedome gainſt a Monarchie: What will he doe ſupported by a king?
- Extreme severity or rigour.
Similar: autocracy, despotism, dictatorship, absolute monarchy, tyranthood
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: monocracy, despotism, dictatorship, authoritarianism, totalitarianism, caesarism, stalinism, absolutism, shogunate, one-man rule, autocracy, despotic, tyrant, totalitarian, mercy, arrogance
noun
Similar: autocracy, despotism, dictatorship, absolute monarchy, tyranthood
Translations
Every language
noun government in which a single ruler has absolute power
| Español | tiranía |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 폭려 pongnyeo, 포학 pohak, 압정 apjeong |
| 日本語 | 暴戻 bōrei, 圧政 assei |
| 中文 | 僭主政治 jiànzhǔ zhèngzhì, 獨裁 /独裁 dúcái, 暴政 bàozhèng, 暴戾 bàolì |
| हिन्दी | ज़ुल्म zulm, ज़ुलमियत zulmiyat, अत्याचार atyācār |
| Kiswahili | udhalimu |
| Português | tirania |
| Français | tyrannie |
| Deutsch | Tyrannenherrschaft, Tyrannei |
| Italiano | tirannide |
| Ελληνικά | τυραννία tyrannía |
| Română | tiranie |
| Русский | тирани́я tiraníja |
| Tiếng Việt | sự bạo ngược, sự chuyên chế, chế độ chuyên chế |
| العربية | طُغْيَان ṭuḡyān, اِسْتِبْدَاد istibdād |
| עברית | עָרִיצוּת 'aritsót |
noun office or jurisdiction of an absolute ruler
| Português | tirania |
|---|---|
| Italiano | tirannide |
| Română | tiranie |
| Русский | тирани́я tiraníja |
Talk about this word "tyranny." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tyranny. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. tyranny. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tyranny "tyranny." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tyranny.Cite this
@misc{tyranny_2026,
title = {tyranny},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tyranny},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
