dystopia

American  

[dis-toh-pee-uh] / dɪsˈtoʊ pi ə /

noun

1. a society characterized by human misery, as squalor, oppression, disease, and overcrowding.

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dystopia British  

/ dɪsˈtəʊpɪə /

noun

1. an imaginary place where everything is as bad as it can be

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Other Word Forms

• dystopian adjective
• dystopianism noun

Etymology

Origin of dystopia

First recorded in 1865–70; dys- + (U)topia

Compare meaning

How does dystopia compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Utopia vs. dystopia

Explanation

A dystopia is a fictional world where people live under a highly controlled, totalitarian system. In his novel "Brave New World," Aldous Huxley created a dystopia where individual identity is suppressed and families no longer exist. Yep, it’s pretty scary. The word dystopia comes from adding the Latin prefix dys, which means “bad,” to the word utopia. So a dystopia is a utopia gone wrong. While the intention might have been to create a perfect society, all the regulations make life there really bad. Often a dystopia in a book is a society of the future, serving as a warning about what might happen if we let technology, industry, and government creep further and further into our lives.

Example Sentences

There are a lot fewer neon-drenched skyscrapers and risqué robots than we were promised, but a quarter of the way through the 21st century, we are indeed essentially living inside a cyberpunk dystopia.

From Salon • Feb. 20, 2026

You might have read about the dystopia of super-polluted cities like Delhi, where the city always seems to be shrouded in dust, and you don’t see the sun for days.

From Slate • Feb. 12, 2026

And when the production falls somewhere between RedOne productions and Plan B deep cuts, that world becomes a post-cultural, hazy pop dystopia of both the past and a far-off, distant future.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 16, 2025

We’re told that in this dystopia, whose currency features an image of Mr. Schwarzenegger, having only 65,000 “new dollars” puts you in the top 1%.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 13, 2025

It would become a corporate-run dystopia, an overpriced theme park for wealthy elitists.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Related Words

• antiutopia
• cacotopia