tyrant
Americannoun
noun
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a person who governs oppressively, unjustly, and arbitrarily; despot
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any person who exercises authority in a tyrannical manner
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anything that exercises tyrannical influence
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(esp in ancient Greece) a ruler whose authority lacked the sanction of law or custom; usurper
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of tyrant
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English tirant, from Old French, earlier tiran (with the addition of t by association with -ant ( def. ) ), from Latin tyrannus, from Greek týrannos, of uncertain origin, perhaps Anatolian
Explanation
If you accuse your parents of being tyrants, you are saying they abuse their control of you — they are cruel, overly restrictive of your freedoms, and unfair. A tyrant is a ruler who is cruel and unjust. Here's an idea for a game: list all the tyrants in history and vote for the worst tyrant of all time. Don't limit yourself to 20th or 21st century ones like Hitler and Stalin and Saddam Hussein. Maybe put Attila the Hun on your list. You could also name a few minor tyrants in your life, such as your boss or another person with unreasonable demands.
Vocabulary lists containing tyrant
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act III
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Ancient Greece - Introductory
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Much Ado About Nothing
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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.
He’s also at work with a few others reviving New York avant-garde small publisher Tyrant Press.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
Appeared in the March 6, 2026, print edition as 'A Tyrant Slayer Who Looks Like a Tyrant'.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026
Pickup's career break came in 1964 with a role as a physician in Doctor Who episode The Tyrant Of France.
From BBC • Feb. 25, 2021
He wrote this wonderful book, "Tyrant," about Shakespeare's tyrants and how they relate to the Trump era.
From Salon • Feb. 11, 2019
"Your father, I'll show you!" shouted furiously Nipper the Tyrant.
From The Suprising Adventures of Sir Toady Lion With Those of General Napoleon Smith by Crockett, S. R. (Samuel Rutherford)
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.
