tyranny

CEFRC1

/ˈtərəni/

noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    Cruel and unfair government by a powerful ruler.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    Absolute power, or its use.

Examples

  • I will be reminded of tyranny and cruelty, if Nero is said.

  • People in the country were living under a tyranny.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
2
Synonyms
5

Also pronounced

  • /ˈtaɪɹəni/
  • /ˈtirəni/

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. The office or jurisdiction of an absolute ruler.

  2. A government in which a single ruler (a tyrant) has absolute power, or this system of government; especially, one that acts cruelly and unjustly.

  3. A system of government in which power is exercised on behalf of the ruler or ruling class, without regard to the wishes of the governed.

More examples

In context

  • Control, dispossession, violence, and tyranny are not “defensive”: they are part of an organized, ongoing aggression.

  • He that with ſhepheards and a litle ſpoyle, Durſt in diſdaine of wrong and tyrannie, Defend his freedome gainſt a Monarchie: What will he doe ſupported by a king?

Synonyms

Quick test

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Question 1 · Quick check

The country suffered under the blank of a dictator who took away all freedoms.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

Inherited from Middle English tirannye, from Old French tyrannie, from Medieval Latin tyrannia, tyrania, from Ancient Greek τυραννία (turannía, “tyranny”), from τύραννος (túrannos, “lord, master, sovereign, tyrant”).