despot
/ˈdespɒt/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈdespɑːt/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈde-spət -ˌspät/ (ame, mw)
despot — 名詞
- despotsingular
- despotsplural
1. a ruler or leader who holds total authority over the people they govern and typi
暴君；獨裁者
握有絕對權力且殘酷統治的人
a ruler or leader who holds total authority over the people they govern and typically wields that authority in harsh, unfair ways.
The country had been ruled for thirty years by a brutal despot who jailed every critic.
這個國家三十年來一直由一名殘暴的暴君統治，任何批評者都會被關進牢裡。
collocation: brutal/cruel despot
Imani warned the council that giving the mayor emergency powers could turn him into a small-town despot.
Imani 警告議會，賦予市長緊急權力可能會把他變成小鎮上的獨裁者。
metaphorical use: any leader behaving tyrannically
History books describe the king as a religious despot who burned villages that refused to convert.
歷史書把這位國王描述成一個宗教暴君，他會把拒絕改信的村莊燒毀。
Hana grew up under a despot whose secret police followed teachers home from school.
Hana 從小生活在一名暴君的統治下，他的秘密警察會一路跟著老師回家。
The novel imagines a future where a single despot controls every newspaper and television station.
這本小說想像一個未來，每一份報紙和每一家電視台都被同一名獨裁者掌控。
- tyrant
closest everyday synonym; slightly more neutral and far more common in modern news writing
- dictator
emphasises one-person rule and is the default journalistic label; 'despot' adds a literary, moralising tone
- autocrat
neutral term for a sole ruler with no cruelty implied; use when you want to describe the system, not condemn it
- tyrannical ruler
two-word descriptive paraphrase often used where the single word 'despot' would sound too literary
- democrat
person committed to government by the people; the political opposite
- constitutional monarch
ruler whose power is limited by law, the opposite of the unlimited authority a despot claims
用法筆記
Subject is almost always a head of state or someone holding state-level authority; using 'despot' for a strict boss or parent is figurative and usually softened with a modifier (e.g. 'office despot', 'small-town despot').