ZebraWords.com - The Definition of 'Despot', Synonyms of 'Despot' & More on 'Despot'

1. Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

Simon Legree, absolute monarch, absolute ruler, all-powerful ruler, arrogator, autarch, autocrat, caesar, commissar, czar, dictator, disciplinarian, driver, duce, hard master, martinet, oligarch, oppressor, pharaoh, slave driver, stickler, strong man, tyrant, usurper, warlord

Dictionary Results for despot:

1. WordNet® 3.0 (2006)

despot
    n 1: a cruel and oppressive dictator [syn: tyrant, autocrat,
         despot]

2. The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Despot \Des"pot\, n. [F. despote, LL. despotus, fr. Gr.
   despo`ths master, lord, the second part of which is akin to
   po`sis husband, and L. potens. See Potent.]
   1. A master; a lord; especially, an absolute or irresponsible
      ruler or sovereign.
      [1913 Webster]

            Irresponsible power in human hands so naturally
            leads to it, that cruelty has become associated with
            despot and tyrant.                    --C. J. Smith.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. One who rules regardless of a constitution or laws; a
      tyrant.
      [1913 Webster]

3. Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856)

DESPOT. This word, in its most simple and original acceptation, signifies 
master and supreme lord; it is synonymous with monarch; but, taken in bad 
part, as it is usually employed, it signifies a tyrant. In some states, 
despot is the title given to the sovereign, as king is given in others. 
Encyc. Lond.

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