dictatorship
noun
dic·ta·tor·ship
dik-ˈtā-tər-ˌship 
ˈdik-ˌtā-
1
: the office of dictator
2
: autocratic rule, control, or leadership
people suffering under his dictatorship
3
a
: a form of government in which absolute power is concentrated in a dictator or a small clique
Communism and dictatorship
b
: a government organization or group in which absolute power is so concentrated
rising up against a military dictatorship
c
: a despotic state
establishing a dictatorship
Synonyms
Examples of dictatorship in a Sentence
The country suffered for many years under his dictatorship.
His enemies accused him of establishing a dictatorship.
Recent Examples on the Web
The Poverty Stoplight Network is a new way to address poverty elimination, honed over four decades of work from Fundación Paraguaya which was founded in 1985 in Paraguay during a military dictatorship with the objective of ending political, social, and economic discrimination.
—
Rhett Power, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
Her robust defense of the dictatorship strikes many Argentines as exaggerated.
—Alfredo Sosa, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 Oct. 2024
In 2003, a U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq and quickly toppled Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship.
—TIME, 23 Sep. 2024
The protests—the biggest and most violent since the end of the dictatorship—uncapped a well of simmering rage (and were brutally repressed by the Chilean national police).
—Carolina A. Miranda, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dictatorship 
Rhett Power, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
Her robust defense of the dictatorship strikes many Argentines as exaggerated.
—Alfredo Sosa, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 Oct. 2024
In 2003, a U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq and quickly toppled Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship.
—TIME, 23 Sep. 2024
The protests—the biggest and most violent since the end of the dictatorship—uncapped a well of simmering rage (and were brutally repressed by the Chilean national police).
—Carolina A. Miranda, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dictatorship
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dictatorship.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Dictatorship.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dictatorship. Accessed 3 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dictatorship
noun
dic·ta·tor·ship
dik-ˈtāt-ər-ˌship
ˈdik-ˌtāt-
1
: the office of a dictator
2
: rule, control, or leadership by one person with total power
3
: a government or country in which total power is held by a dictator or a small group
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