-crat

American  

1. a combining form meaning “ruler,” “member of a ruling body,” “advocate of a particular form of rule,” used in the formation of compound words.

   autocrat; technocrat.

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-crat British  

combining form

1. indicating a person who takes part in or is a member of a form of government or class See also -cracy

   democrat

   technocrat

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Usage

What does -crat mean? The combining form -crat is used like a suffix meaning variously “ruler,” "member of a ruling body," or "advocate (supporter) of a form of rule." It is occasionally used in technical terms, especially in sociology.The form -crat ultimately comes from Greek krátos, meaning “rule” and “strength.”What are variants of -crat?While -crat doesn't have any variants, it is related to the form -cracy, as in plutocracy. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article for -cracy.

Other Word Forms

• -cratic combining form

Etymology

Origin of -crat

< Greek -kratēs as in autokratḗs autocrat; replacing -crate < French < Greek, as above

Example Sentences

But on day eight, once it was clear that she had cleared the bar and was moving on to the “ ’crat chat” phase, Tamzin and her mom celebrated by going to the beach.

From Slate

“Lord, we need passion and excitement,” said state Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, a prominent Demo­crat in South Carolina, one of the early-voting states in the race for the nomination.

From Washington Post

In late 2007, after that effort foundered, Representative Xavier Becerra, a Los Angeles Demo­crat, approached Representative Sam Johnson, a Republican from the northern suburbs of Dallas.

From New York Times

Rendered incoherent, Abbi was only able to muster a nonsensical "Hello. Proud Demo. Crat. College. Aquarius. I pegged" as she shook Clinton's hand. 

From Los Angeles Times

In contrast, acetylcarnitine had no effect on muscles from mice that were missing CrAT.

From Science Magazine