autocrat

[ aw-tuh-krat ]

noun

1. an absolute ruler, especially a monarch who holds and exercises the powers of government as by inherent right, not subject to restrictions.
2. a person invested with or claiming to exercise absolute authority.
3. a person who behaves in an authoritarian manner; a domineering person.

autocrat

/ ˈɔːtəˌkræt /

noun

1. a ruler who possesses absolute and unrestricted authority
2. a domineering or dictatorial person

Word History and Origins

Origin of autocrat¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; from Greek autokratḗs “self-ruling, ruling alone,” from auto- auto- ¹ + krát(os) “power” + -ēs, adjective suffix

Example Sentences

Like any other would-be autocrat, President-elect Donald Trump is selecting people for key positions overseeing the military and legal system based not on objective merits but their personal loyalty to one man: in this case, a 78-year-old Republican who felt betrayed in his first term when more-or-less qualified cabinet officials would balk at some of his more extreme demands.

From Salon

When he boasts that Putin would not have invaded Ukraine on his watch, what he means is that he would have handed the country over to the Russian autocrat on a silver platter, no invasion necessary.

From Los Angeles Times

Rogan, affable bro that he is, made Trump’s barely decipherable “weave” audible, if not intellectually accessible, from whichever comfortable place a listener prefers to receive the unfiltered blathering of a 78-year-old would-be autocrat.

From Salon

He yearns openly to rule the way China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin do, as an autocrat answerable to no one.

From Los Angeles Times

Foreman, who wrote, directed and designed many of his own productions, is more of a collaborative autocrat.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• despot
• tyrant