satrap

American  

[sey-trap, sa-] / ˈseɪ træp, ˈsæ- /

noun

1. a governor of a province under the ancient Persian monarchy.

2. a subordinate ruler, often a despotic one.

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satrap British  

/ ˈsætrəp /

noun

1. (in ancient Persia) a provincial governor

2. a subordinate ruler, esp a despotic one

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Etymology

Origin of satrap

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin satrapa < Greek satrápēs < Old Persian khshathra-pāvan- country-protector

Example Sentences

Alexander Lukashenko, the Belarus autocrat, has become Mr. Putin’s satrap, and the arrival of nuclear warheads would only subordinate Belarus further to Russia.

From Washington Post

According to the sixth-century historian Procopius, the Byzantine emperor Justinian I gave a gift of a sea silk cloak to five Armenian satraps.

From The Guardian

He called for future presidents to be chosen through direct election to avoid the ascendance of "satraps or demagogues."

From Fox News

For proponents of the two-state model, the PA was a nationalist project working toward eventual independence, while in the apartheid framework it was merely an Israeli satrap.

From The Guardian

Less so as a manual for believable characterization: People who barely speak English use words like “profligacy,” “satraps” and “malcontents.”

From Washington Post