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Meaning & use

despot

noun·Advanceddisapproving

Last updated

UK/ˈdespɒt/
US/ˈdespɑːt/
Usage warning: this word is disapproving. It shows a negative opinion, so take care with who and what you use it about.

Meanings

  1. nouncountabledisapproving

    A ruler who holds complete power and uses it harshly, with no limits.

    Grammar: Countable: a despot, the despots.

    Patterns

    • a despot who does something

    The people rose up against the despot who had ruled for thirty years.

    History remembers him as a ruthless despot.

    Several despots fell during the revolution.

  2. nouncountablefigurativehumorous

    Any person who treats others harshly and bosses them without regard for their wishes.

    Grammar: Used figuratively and often humorously about bosses or parents.

    The head chef was a kitchen despot.

    My manager is a petty despot about the office thermostat.

Word forms

pluraldespots

Common combinations

brutal despot
The brutal despot silenced all critics.
overthrow a despot
Protesters tried to overthrow the despot.
enlightened despot
Some historians call him an enlightened despot.
ruthless despot
A ruthless despot controlled the country's army.
petty despot
The petty despot ruled the small office.

Synonyms and how they differ

tyrant
Tyrant stresses cruel and unjust use of power, while despot stresses that the power is absolute.
dictator
Dictator describes a ruler who has seized total control of a country, while despot can also describe a hereditary ruler.
autocrat
Autocrat is a neutral political term for a sole ruler, but despot always carries criticism.
oppressor
Oppressor focuses on the suffering of those ruled, not on the ruler's total power.

Opposites

democratliberator

Word family

despotic adjective
ruling with absolute and harsh power
despotism noun
government by a despot
despotically adverb
in an absolute, harsh way

Commonly confused: despot or depot?

despot vs depot

A depot is a storage place or a station. It looks like despot with one letter missing but means something very different.

Practice

The country suffered for decades under a cruel ___ who ignored the law and jailed his critics.

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