tyrant

American  

[tahy-ruhnt] / ˈtaɪ rənt /

noun

• tyrants
  plural

1. a sovereign or other ruler who uses power oppressively or unjustly.

   Synonyms:

   dictator, autocrat, despot

2. any person in a position of authority who exercises power oppressively or despotically.

3. a tyrannical or compulsory influence.

4. an absolute ruler, especially one in ancient Greece or Sicily.

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tyrant British  

/ ˈtaɪrənt /

noun

1. a person who governs oppressively, unjustly, and arbitrarily; despot

2. any person who exercises authority in a tyrannical manner

3. anything that exercises tyrannical influence

4. (esp in ancient Greece) a ruler whose authority lacked the sanction of law or custom; usurper

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• undertyrant
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tyrants
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tyrant

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English tirant, from Old French, earlier tiran (with the addition of t by association with -ant ( def. ) ), from Latin tyrannus, from Greek týrannos, of uncertain origin, perhaps Anatolian

Explanation

If you accuse your parents of being tyrants, you are saying they abuse their control of you — they are cruel, overly restrictive of your freedoms, and unfair. A tyrant is a ruler who is cruel and unjust. Here's an idea for a game: list all the tyrants in history and vote for the worst tyrant of all time. Don't limit yourself to 20th or 21st century ones like Hitler and Stalin and Saddam Hussein. Maybe put Attila the Hun on your list. You could also name a few minor tyrants in your life, such as your boss or another person with unreasonable demands.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tyrant tyrants

Demographer Juan Carlos Albizu-Campos estimates it is now as low as eight million, only slightly more than 67 years ago, when Fidel Castro declared, "The tyrant has fled... the revolution has triumphed!"

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Her mother, Susana Higuchi, called him a corrupt tyrant.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

He informally referred to them as "Tylosaurus thalassotyrannus," meaning "sea tyrant."

From Science Daily ● May 23, 2026

A friendly guy who blunders into one scene looking for a bathroom turns out to be a tyrant responsible for some very bad things.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2026

But the tyrant who had seized power was jealous of anyone with education and money, and so Papito was often sent out of the country on a bogus diplomatic post.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

The pontiff responded by saying he had a "moral duty to speak out" against war -- and then sparked more headlines with a speech in Cameroon lambasting "tyrants" ransacking the world.

From Barron's ● May 3, 2026

ROME—Pope Leo XIV is re-establishing the Catholic Church as a loud voice in world affairs, challenging President Trump over the war in Iran and decrying the rule of tyrants during a trip to Africa.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026

Pope Leo has criticised leaders who spend billions on wars and said the world was "being ravaged by a handful of tyrants" in unusually forceful comments during a visit to Cameroon.

From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026

Humans have laughed at tyrants going back to the days of the ancient Greeks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2025

A prosperous city-state on the east side of the island of Sicily, Syracuse had been muddling along for years under a succession of tyrants.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Related Words

• autocrat
• bully
• despot
• dictator
• oppressor