despotic

American  

[dih-spot-ik] / dɪˈspɒt ɪk /

Also despotical

adjective

1. of, relating to, or of the nature of a despot or despotism; autocratic; tyrannical.

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Other Word Forms

• despotically adverb
• nondespotic adjective
• nondespotically adverb
• undespotic adjective
• undespotically adverb

Etymology

Origin of despotic

1640–50; < French despotique < Greek despotikós. See despot, -ic

Example Sentences

His new boss is the imposing Monsignor Jefferson Wicks, despotically played by Josh Brolin.

From The Wall Street Journal

Far from being despotic, Louis sought to be a constitutional monarch, with representative institutions that could mobilize consent and resources behind state policy.

From The Wall Street Journal

She has clearly shown courage and resolve in resisting President Nicolás Maduro’s increasingly corrupt and despotic regime, which has finally lost its last vestiges of international left-wing legitimacy.

From Salon

His despotic dismissals of the rule of law, in ways both large and small, are creating what many in the GOP have long fantasized: An imperial presidency.

From Salon

"There is a path leading to a democratic transition from this semi-authoritarian, semi-constitutional system," he argues, "and there is a despotic path leading to a dictatorship."

From BBC