Noun: authoritarianism o,thor-u'teh-ree-u,ni-zum or o,thór-u'teh-ree-u,ni-zum [N. Amer], o,thó-ru'teh-ree-u,ni-zum [Brit]
- A form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution, laws or opposition etc.)
"The country suffered under a brutal authoritarianism for decades";
- dictatorship, absolutism, Caesarism, despotism, monocracy, one-man rule, shogunate, Stalinism, totalitarianism, tyranny
Derived forms: authoritarianisms
Encyclopedia: Authoritarianism