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• philosopher king
  philosopher king

  noun

  the Platonic ideal of a ruler, philosophically trained and enlightened.
• philosopher-king
  philosopher-king

  In the Republic by Plato, the ideal ruler, who has the virtue and wisdom of a philosopher.

philosopher king

American  

noun

1. the Platonic ideal of a ruler, philosophically trained and enlightened.

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philosopher-king Cultural  

1. In the Republic by Plato, the ideal ruler, who has the virtue and wisdom of a philosopher.

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Etymology

Origin of philosopher king

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

philosopher king philosopher-king

There he met Peter Thiel, the self-styled philosopher king of the right-wing tech community.

From Barron's ● Dec. 24, 2025

At nChain’s London offices, Dr. Wright, an Australian computer scientist, was treated as a sort of philosopher king.

From New York Times ● May 21, 2024

He’s a gentle philosopher king and a spiritual seeker who wants to leave a “service legacy on the Earth,” he said.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 27, 2021

Influenced by libertarian Ayn Rand and Tolkien's fantasy trilogy, Thiel, then in his early 30s, carried himself like a contrarian philosopher king.

From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2021

One can but divine its beginnings in the mysterious priesthood of Quetzalcoatl, or trace it in the traditions of the philosopher king of Tezcuco, and the sceptical Incas of whom Garcilasso and others tell us.

From Lectures on the Origin and Growth of Religion as Illustrated by the Native Religions of Mexico and Peru by Albert R?ville

But one senses his eagerness to resolve all questions in Marcus’ favor and preserve the luster of the philosopher-king.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 11, 2026

During the late 1960s, Smithson anointed himself the fledgling land art movement’s philosopher-king, promoting Heizer, who first took him out West.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2022

As one philosopher-king noted on Cracker Barrel’s post:

From Washington Post ● Aug. 3, 2022

An affectionate portrait of his friend John Gaspar Gevartius juxtaposes a bust of Marcus Aurelius, the ancient Stoic philosopher-king, with the humanist literary scholar, pen poised over a thick sheaf of paper.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 6, 2021

Jefferson was perfectly capable of remaining on script and in role as philosopher-king to the end.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis