totalitarians

Definition of totalitariansnext
plural of totalitarian
See the Dictionary Definition 

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for totalitarians
Noun
  • Not your grandma’s authoritarians Today’s authoritarian rulers realize that civil society has the potential to support democracy and pry loose their grip on power.
    Christopher Justin Einolf, The Conversation, 26 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Even as long-reigning autocrats such as Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are removed from power, the outlook for the global state of democracy remains highly uncertain.
    Yana Gorokhovskaia, Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2026
  • Trump’s attacks may have raised some doubts in China that Xi’s backing of autocrats is wise.
    Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Biden put this sentiment into action by working with Netanyahu despite serious moral and political failures in Gaza, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on NATO expansion, and with Gulf potentates on the region’s security architecture.
    James Jeffrey, Foreign Affairs, 13 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants.
    CBS News, CBS News, 19 Apr. 2026
  • Ready to meet the season's new allies, enemies, tyrants, and giants?
    Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Even under military threat, many dictators and authoritarian leaders — Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Slobodan Milosevic in Serbia, Bashar al-Assad in Syria and earlier this year, Maduro in Venezuela — have chosen resistance until the last minute.
    Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
  • Years later, as Ukraine fights a war to defend its democracy — to preserve a state where institutions serve the people rather than dictators, where the press remains independent, and where citizens can shape the politics around them — the contrast between the two countries is striking.
    Nataliya Gumenyuk, The Dial, 21 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Thus, to be real peace-makers, whether Christian or not, responsible leaders need to be aware that the approach of pacifism often paves the way for dictators and despots to inflict more and more violence.
    Bill Keane, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2026
  • These despots will continue to lash out at America.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • In the piece, the Vicar of Christ is felled not by his oppressors but rather by a random cosmic event.
    Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 16 Apr. 2026
  • During the confrontation, Hussein and his followers were massacred, but the imam’s quest for justice became a defining value of Shiite identity, fostering a sense of revolutionary duty to fight oppressors at any cost.
    Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Totalitarians.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/totalitarians. Accessed 2 May. 2026.

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