Pol Pot

American

[pol pot] / ˈpɒl ˈpɒt /

noun

Saloth Sar, 1928–98, Cambodian Khmer Rouge leader and political figure: prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Kampuchea, 1976–79.

Pol Pot British

/ ˈpɒl ˈpɒt /

noun

original name Kompong Thom. 1925–98, Cambodian Communist statesman; prime minister of Kampuchea (1976; 1977–79); his policies led to the deaths of thousands in labour camps before he was overthrown by Vietnamese forces; in 1997 his former supporters in the Khmer Rouge captured him and claimed to have tried and sentenced him to life imprisonment

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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 callers opine on anything from pot holes to Pol Pot.

From BBC • Mar. 7, 2026

“I never have compared any of the signatories to Josef Mengele or Pol Pot, and I never have characterized any of the signatories as murderers,” Ebright told me by email.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2024

Interviewing dictators – even the most murderous ones, such as Cambodia’s Pol Pot – can represent a significant journalistic achievement.

From Salon • Feb. 23, 2024

“I will never forget that he rescued our lives from the Pol Pot regime.”

From Seattle Times • Jul. 22, 2023

If it was Pol Pot who gave the order to place more soldiers at the village level, the increase has created a shift in the power balance.

From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023