czar

American  

[zahr, tsahr] / zɑr, tsɑr /

Or tsar,

noun

1. an emperor or king.

2. (often initial capital letter) the former emperor of Russia.

3. an autocratic ruler or leader.

4. any person exercising great authority or power in a particular field.

   a czar of industry.

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czar British  

/ zɑː /

noun

1. a variant spelling (esp US) of tsar

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czar Cultural  

1. The title of rulers or emperors of Russia from the sixteenth century until the Russian Revolution. The czars ruled as absolute monarchs (see absolute monarchy) until the early twentieth century, when a parliament was established in Russia. Czar can also be spelled tsar.

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Discover More

The term czar is sometimes applied generally to a powerful leader or to a government administrator with wide-ranging powers.

Other Word Forms

• czardom noun

Etymology

Origin of czar

First recorded in 1545–55; from Russian tsar', Old Russian tsĭsarĭ “emperor, king” (akin to Old Church Slavonic tsěsarĭ ), from Gothic kaisar “emperor” (from Greek or Latin ); Greek kaîsar, from Latin Caesar; Caesar ( def. )

Example Sentences

Actually, that comparison was made by New York infrastructure czar Robert Moses; Mr. Gittlitz fits in a venerable tradition.

From The Wall Street Journal

White House border czar Tom Homan told Fox News Sunday that ICE agents would be acting as a force multiplier.

From Barron's

Last summer, David Sacks, the White House AI czar, played down the possibility of chips being diverted to China, saying it was “very easy to basically verify” their location.

From The Wall Street Journal

He also did a stint as former Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s “jobs czar” and spent roughly a year as publisher and chief executive of The Times.

From Los Angeles Times

Key Democratic and Republican senators huddled with DHS border czar Tom Homan on Thursday, but the meeting didn’t produce a deal.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• ruler