Tyrannical

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /təˈrænəkəl/

Definitions

1. Characteristic of a ruler who exercises power in a cruel, oppressive, and arbitrary manner without regard for the rights or welfare of those governed
2. exercising absolute power in an oppressive, arbitrary, and merciless way that denies freedom and justice to those subject to such control
3. marked by cruel, authoritarian rule that suppresses individual liberty through force and disregard for human dignity

Etymology: The Greek word "túrannos" originally meant nothing sinister. It was used for a ruler who had seized power outside the traditional succession, and it did not carry the moral condemnation it later acquired. Many early tyrants were actually popular reformers, and the sense of cruelty and abuse grew up around the word only gradually in Greek usage. The adjective "tyrannical" comes from Latin "tyrannicus," which was borrowed from Greek, with the English "-al" suffix added to form the adjective. The stem "tyrann-" entered English as the noun "tyrant" by way of Old French, and "tyrannical" followed as a derived adjective built on that Latin base. The word therefore carries a double history: its root once described a legitimate kind of ruler who simply held power without a hereditary claim, while the adjective preserves the later sense of arbitrary, merciless domination.

Synonyms: oppressive, dictatorial, autocratic, despotic

Antonyms: democratic, liberal, benevolent, just, fair