strongman
Americannoun
plural
strongmen-
a person who performs remarkable feats of strength, as in a circus.
-
a political leader who controls by force; dictator.
-
the most powerful or influential person in an organization or business, by reason of skill in the formulation and execution of plans, work, etc.
noun
-
a performer, esp one in a circus, who performs feats of strength
-
any person regarded as a source of power, capability, initiative, etc
Etymology
Origin of strongman
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.
“This doesn’t read as strongman politics to them,” she said.
From Slate • Apr. 9, 2026
In fact he is the opposite — a domineering strongman who seeks to bully everyone around him into compliance.
From Salon • Mar. 19, 2026
But how many prisoners and which ones are released has become a bellwether of the country’s future after the removal of its strongman leader.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026
Inside the ornate former presidential palace, photographs and oral testimony detail the grinding poverty and ingrained corruption of the dictatorship of Cuba's then-military strongman, Fulgencio Batista.
From BBC • Feb. 27, 2026
The latter by this time had already had an eventful career: a Macedonian-leaning social conservative, he was already a prolific author when Cassander, the strongman in Pella, installed him as dictator of Athens.
From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
