Wiktionary

autocracy

English

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Etymology

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From auto- +‎ -cracy, from Ancient Greek αὐτοκρατία (autokratía, “A system of government by one person with absolute power.”), from αὐτός (autós, “single, self, same, alone”) + κράτος (krátos, “power”) + -ία (-ía, “feminine abstract nouns suffix”); see also Ancient Greek αὐτοκρατής (autokratḗs, “one who governs alone”).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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autocracy (countable and uncountable, plural autocracies)

  1. (uncountable) A form of government in which unlimited power is held by a single individual.
    • 2022 December 1, John Avlon, “Opinion: The tide is turning against autocracy”, in CNN‎[1], archived from the original on 2 August 2024:
      I want to be clear: This shift toward democracy and away from autocracy is no reason to break out the “mission accomplished” banner.
  2. (countable) An instance of this government.
    • 2022 December 1, John Avlon, “Opinion: The tide is turning against autocracy”, in CNN‎[2], archived from the original on 2 August 2024:
      The will of the people of Ukraine to defend their democracy is a reminder that autocracies cannot ultimately overcome free people willing to defend their liberty.
    • 2025 May 9, Cameron Joseph, “They’ve watched democracies fail. They see it happening under Trump.”, in The Christian Science Monitor‎[3], archived from the original on 16 July 2025:
      Among those who study authoritarian regimes, a consensus has emerged that [US president Donald Trump's] early moves display common characteristics of burgeoning autocracies.

Synonyms

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Hyponyms

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Coordinate terms

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Descendants

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  • → Malay: autokrasi

Translations

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