authoritarian
Americanadjective
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favoring complete obedience or subjection to authority as opposed to individual freedom.
authoritarian principles; authoritarian attitudes.
-
of or relating to a governmental or political system, principle, or practice in which individual freedom is held as completely subordinate to the power or authority of the state, centered either in one person or a small group that is not constitutionally accountable to the people.
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exercising complete or almost complete control over the will of another or of others.
an authoritarian parent.
noun
adjective
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favouring, denoting, or characterized by strict obedience to authority
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favouring, denoting, or relating to government by a small elite with wide powers
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despotic; dictatorial; domineering
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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antiauthoritarianismnoun
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authoritarianismnoun
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antiauthoritarianadjective
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nonauthoritarianadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of authoritarian
First recorded in 1875–80; authorit(y) + -arian
Explanation
If your teacher orders you to detention every time you show up to class with a dull pencil, you could probably describe her as an authoritarian — a ruler who prefers order to freedom. Authoritarian and authority both begin with author, which comes from an ancient Latin word meaning "master," "teacher," or "leader." The connection between authoritarian and master is obvious enough, and you can think of an author as the master of the fictional world she creates. Authoritarian is also an adjective. That teacher with the rule against dull pencils? You can use the noun form to say that she's an authoritarian, or you can use an adjective and skip the "an": "She's authoritarian."
Vocabulary lists containing authoritarian
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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Power Suffix: -arian
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Government
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The latter is the hangover from a peripatetic childhood defined and dominated by his charismatic father, a once-idealistic scholar whose dreams of a Arab utopia soured into authoritarian megalomania.
From Salon • Jun. 27, 2026
The temptation is to read these two things ironically — sad comfort toy in one hand, authoritarian RoboCop in the other — and leave it at that.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 22, 2026
Levitsky is an expert on authoritarian regimes, and how they take and keep power.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 15, 2026
In her 2016 bid, Fujimori tried to distance herself from her movement’s authoritarian past, cultivating a more moderate image.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Levy Pants must become more militant and authoritarian in order to survive in the jungle of modem commercialism.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
