Printer Friendly
The Free Dictionary
906,210,665 visitors served.
?
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

despot

   Also found in: Legal, Acronyms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.04 sec.
des·pot  (dspt)
n.
1. A ruler with absolute power.
2. A person who wields power oppressively; a tyrant.
3.
a. A Byzantine emperor or prince.
b. An Eastern Orthodox bishop or patriarch.

[French despote, from Medieval Latin despota, from Greek despots, master; see dem- in Indo-European roots.]

des·potic (d-sptk) adj.
des·poti·cal·ly adv.

despot
Noun
any person in power who acts tyrannically [Greek despotēs lord, master]
despotic adj
despotically adv
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.despotdespot - a cruel and oppressive dictator
czar - a person having great power
potentate, dictator - a ruler who is unconstrained by law

despot
Translations
Spanish despot [ˈdɛspɔt] ndéspota m/f
French despot [ˈdɛspɔt] ndespote m/f
German despot [ˈdɛspɔt] nDespot m
Italian despot [ˈdɛspɔt] ndespota m

?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
Add definition
? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
The skeleton of even the most lawless despot makes a good constitutional sovereign.
An earthly despotism would be the absolutely perfect earthly government, if the conditions were the same, namely, the despot the perfectest individual of the human race, and his lease of life perpetual.
When I have been travelling up and down on our boats, or about on my collecting tours, and reflected that every brutal, disgusting, mean, low-lived fellow I met, was allowed by our laws to become absolute despot of as many men, women and children, as he could cheat, steal, or gamble money enough to buy,--when I have seen such men in actual ownership of helpless children, of young girls and women,--I have been ready to curse my country, to curse the human race
 
Dictionary/thesaurus browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Translations
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2008 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.