dictatorship

American  

[dik-tey-ter-ship, dik-tey-] / dɪkˈteɪ tərˌʃɪp, ˈdɪk teɪ- /

noun

dictatorships plural

1. a country, government, or the form of government in which absolute power is exercised by a dictator.

2. absolute, imperious, or overbearing power or control.

3. the office or position held by a dictator.

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dictatorship British  

/ dɪkˈteɪtəˌʃɪp /

noun

1. the rank, office, or period of rule of a dictator

2. government by a dictator or dictators

3. a country ruled by a dictator or dictators

4. absolute or supreme power or authority

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dictatorship Cultural  

1. Government by a single person or by a junta or other group that is not responsible to the people or their elected representatives.

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Discover More

Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin were dictators.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• dictatorships
  plural

Etymology

Origin of dictatorship

First recorded in 1580–90; dictator + -ship

Compare meaning

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

• totalitarianism vs. dictatorship
• autocracy vs. dictatorship
• fascism vs. dictatorship

Explanation

A dictatorship is a government or a social situation where one person makes all the rules and decisions without input from anyone else. Dictatorship implies absolute power — one person who takes control — of a political situation, a family, a classroom or even a camping expedition. In government, a dictatorship leaves no room for input from anyone who is not the top guy or gal. The noun comes from the late 14th century Latin word, dictare, which means to "repeat or say often." In a dictatorship, one person keeps repeating the same command: "My way or the highway."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dictatorship dictatorships

But other defectors tell the BBC that despite the restrictions, K-pop has cut through in Kim Jong Un's stifling dictatorship.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

The contemporary Falangist movement in Spain explicitly borrows its name and iconography from Francisco Franco’s dictatorship.

From Salon ● Jun. 7, 2026

In this heart-sore and compassionate investigation of unresolved pain, director Marialuisa Ernst makes a parallel between their plight and how her uncle’s disappearance during Argentina’s dictatorship affected her family.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026

Under the scheme, a foreign government contracts with Havana to receive Cuban healthcare professionals in its country in exchange for a hard-currency payment to the dictatorship.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 17, 2026

Mami looks past the crowd at Papi, over there happily exchanging dictatorship stories with the other men.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

But at the same time, even under the cruelest dictatorships, it has still managed to produce fine literature.

From Barron's ● May 21, 2026

The Eritrean leader has ruled his country since it first gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, and has since consolidated power to create one of the world’s most repressive dictatorships.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026

There's a reason this protest streak runs so hot in South Korea, which only became a democracy in the late 1980s and is well-acquainted with political interference, dictatorships and military overreach.

From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026

“Especially in a city of refugees like Miami, a lot of people have escaped dictatorships and strongmen who’ve shut down dissenting opinions,” said Costantini in an interview Monday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2025

I would have consented to live under the most rigid type of dictatorship, for I felt that dictatorships, too, defined the use of men, however degrading that use might be.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright

Related Words

• authoritarianism
• autocracy
• totalitarianism
• tyranny