autocrat
Americannoun
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an absolute ruler, especially a monarch who holds and exercises the powers of government as by inherent right, not subject to restrictions.
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a person invested with or claiming to exercise absolute authority.
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a person who behaves in an authoritarian manner; a domineering person.
noun
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a ruler who possesses absolute and unrestricted authority
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a domineering or dictatorial person
Etymology
Origin of autocrat
First recorded in 1795–1805; from Greek autokratḗs “self-ruling, ruling alone,” from auto- auto- 1 + krát(os) “power” + -ēs, adjective suffix
Explanation
An autocrat is another name for a dictator, someone who wields absolute power and uses it in a cruel and despotic manner. This is a word for cruel, oppressive dictators. Hitler and Stalin were historic autocrats. In more recent times, dictators such as Saddam Hussein and Qaddafi were autocrats. From autocrat, we get the word autocratic, for anyone behaving like a dictator. Unfortunately, through history, there have been many autocrats: leaders who didn't give their people a say in their regime and killed their enemies. You might call your boss, parent, or teacher an autocrat, but that's probably an exaggeration.
Vocabulary lists containing autocrat
To Thine Own Self Be True: Auto
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Do it Yourself: Words Beginning with "AUTO"
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Sapiens
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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 Manhattan hearing comes as Washington cautiously warms ties with Caracas, with the question of who will pay the legal fees of the former autocrat and his wife expected to take center stage.
From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026
This was really fertile soil for him, or any autocrat, to exploit.
From Slate • Feb. 24, 2026
Weeks earlier, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s elite, combat-trained unit participated in the capture of Venezuelan autocrat Nicolás Maduro in his heavily fortified Caracas compound.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026
Listen to journalist Masha Gessen: Believe the autocrat.
From Salon • Feb. 28, 2025
This new order of things disgusted him, and he howled dismally for ‘Marmar’, as his angry passions subsided, and recollections of his tender bondwoman returned to the captive autocrat.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
