anarchy

[ an-er-kee ]

See synonyms for anarchy on Thesaurus.com

noun

a state of society without government or law.
political and social disorder due to the absence of governmental control: The death of the king was followed by a year of anarchy.

anarchism (def. 1).
lack of obedience to an authority; insubordination: the anarchy of his rebellious teenage years.
confusion and disorder: Intellectual and moral anarchy followed his loss of faith.It was impossible to find the book I was looking for in the anarchy of his bookshelves.

Origin of anarchy

First recorded in 1530–40; from Middle French anarchie or Medieval Latin anarchia or directly from Greek anarchía “lawlessness,” literally, “lack of a leader,” equivalent to ánarch(os) “leaderless” (an- “without, lacking” + arch(ós) “leader” + -os adjective suffix) + -ia noun suffix; see an-¹, -y³

Other words for anarchy

2	lawlessness, disruption, turmoil
5	chaos, disruption, turbulence; license; disorganization, disintegration

See synonyms for anarchy on Thesaurus.com

Other words from anarchy

hy·per·an·ar·chy, noun
pro·an·ar·chy, adjective

Words that may be confused with anarchy

anarchism, anarchy

Words Nearby anarchy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use anarchy in a sentence

Evangelicals have long believed that the current age would climax with horrific plagues, social anarchy, rampant sexual immorality and military conflicts.
Breaking evangelical resistance to coronavirus vaccines will be hard | Matthew Sutton | May 21, 2021 | Washington Post
The destruction of the republic by armed violence was justified by the claim that it was illegitimate, based on electoral falsification, and that its political leaders were thieving parasites who had brought only anarchy and crime.
My Father Fled Fascism in Spain—and Taught Me How Lies Can Destroy a Democracy | Sebastian Junger | May 19, 2021 | Time
It’s anarchy, this enhanced freedom players now have to change their minds.
NCAA’s transfer changes are good for athletes and challenging for coaches. Seems fair. | Jerry Brewer | April 16, 2021 | Washington Post
In periods of anarchy — when a queen dies and is not yet replaced — dialects started to dissolve, becoming much more variable, the researchers found.
Naked mole-rat colonies speak with unique dialects | Jonathan Lambert | January 28, 2021 | Science News
Celebrated as the “East Side Joan of Arc” and condemned as the “she-dog of anarchy,” Gurley burns through these pages like an avenging angel.
‘The Cold Millions,’ Jess Walter’s celebration of forgotten heroes, is one of the most captivating novels of the year | Ron Charles | October 29, 2020 | Washington Post

Letting humans use their common sense is not an invitation to anarchy.
Red Tape Is Strangling Good Samaritans | Philip K. Howard | December 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
I had the opportunity to appear on the popular Sons of anarchy series in their final season.
Porn Stars on the Year in Porn: Drone Erotica, Belle Knox, and Wild Sex | Aurora Snow | December 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
There are quite enough sons of anarchy in Syria and Iraq already.
Dutch Biker Gangs Vs. ISIS | Nadette De Visser, Christopher Dickey | December 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
And this is the prevailing attitude that white St. Louis fears the most: an all out riot, anarchy, lawlessness, disorder.
Ferguson Tensions in Black and White | Seth Ferranti | November 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The notion of anarchy so appalled the conservative Reagan, he came out against Briggs, and it was defeated.
Gay Activist David Mixner: I Mercy Killed 8 People | Tim Teeman | October 29, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
They were sure that the white troops in Meerut would soon arrive and put an end to the prevalent anarchy.
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
A remnant of the long parliament assembled during the anarchy, and has been termed the rump.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology | Joel Munsell
Mr. Hutchinson was doubtless temperamentally less inclined to fear tyranny than anarchy.
The Eve of the Revolution | Carl Becker
Such a course would tend only to bloody and interminable anarchy.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV. | Various
The Republic had proved an utter failure, and France was but a tempest-tossed ocean of anarchy.
Madame Roland, Makers of History | John S. C. Abbott

British Dictionary definitions for anarchy

anarchy

/ (ˈænəkɪ) /

noun

general lawlessness and disorder, esp when thought to result from an absence or failure of government
the absence or lack of government

the absence of any guiding or uniting principle; disorder; chaos
the theory or practice of political anarchism

Origin of anarchy

C16: from Medieval Latin anarchia, from Greek anarkhia, from anarkhos without a ruler, from an- + arkh- leader, from arkhein to rule

Derived forms of anarchy

anarchic (ænˈɑːkɪk) or anarchical, adjective
anarchically, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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