tyranny

American  

[tir-uh-nee] / ˈtɪr ə ni /

noun

tyrannies plural

1. arbitrary or unrestrained exercise of power; despotic abuse of authority.

   Synonyms:

   dictatorship, absolutism, despotism

2. the government or rule of a tyrant or absolute ruler.

3. a state ruled by a tyrant or absolute ruler.

4. oppressive or unjustly severe government on the part of any ruler.

5. undue severity or harshness.

6. a cruel or harsh act or proceeding; an arbitrary, oppressive, or tyrannical action.

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tyranny British  

/ ˈtɪrənɪ /

noun

1. 1. government by a tyrant or tyrants; despotism

   2. similarly oppressive and unjust government by more than one person

2. arbitrary, unreasonable, or despotic behaviour or use of authority

   the teacher's tyranny

3. any harsh discipline or oppression

   the tyranny of the clock

4. a political unit ruled by a tyrant

5. (esp in ancient Greece) government by a usurper

6. a tyrannical act

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• tyrannousness
  noun
• tyrannous
  adjective
• tyrannously
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tyrannies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tyranny

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English tyrannie, from Old French, from Medieval Latin tyrannia, equivalent to Latin tyrann(us) “oppressive ruler” + -ia noun suffix; see tyrant, -y ³

Explanation

Tyranny is a noun that describes a repressive and arbitrarily cruel regime. Don't accuse your mother of tyranny just because she won't let you play video games all weekend long. One of the root words of tyranny is the Latin tyrannia which means the "rule of a tyrant" and a tyrant is a "cruel master." Today, it can mean the repressive regime of a dictator or it can also mean being controlled by something metaphorically harsh like time or work. Maybe the oldest example of a tyranny is that of Tyrannosaurus Rex, or "king of the giant lizards," who many of us grew up thinking was the largest, most predatory and frightening of the dinosaurs who supposedly ruled over the rest of the dinosaur world with its huge, sharp teeth and claws.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tyranny tyrannies

Computing remained very expensive despite the new technology, owing to what mathematicians call the tyranny of numbers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026

On a stage at the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, the chief executive of Australian airline Qantas declares: "The tyranny of distance has finally been conquered".

From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026

All call for their countrymen to fight against tyranny.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026

Thomas Jefferson once wrote that he had “sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of mind.”

From Salon ● Apr. 24, 2026

This closing of the port of Boston was indeed tyranny; this was oppression; this was the last straw upon the back of many a moderate man.

From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes

Since then, most of the fierce old tyrannies Joyce confronted have passed away.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

He built the community directly from his phone and, whether intended or not, that connection has sustained his career - insulating him from the tyrannies of radio playlists and streaming placement.

From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2025

Ironically, the moves to liberate Soviet citizens from the tyrannies of the past made Gorbachev more popular in the West than in his own country.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2022

Undergirding the fun-house surrealism is the series’s feel for the soft tyrannies of the modern workplace.

From New York Times ● Feb. 17, 2022

Claudia answered, “Of course. Wearing shoes all the time is one of the tyrannies you’ll escape by coming with me.”

From "From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" by E.L. Konigsburg

Related Words

• authoritarianism
• autocracy
• coercion
• cruelty
• despotism
• domination
• oligarchy
• oppression
• terrorism
• totalitarianism