Authoritarian

adjective; also noun

/ɔːˌθɒrɪˈtɛəriən/

Favouring or enforcing strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom and democratic participation.

✍️ Usage in a UPSC answer

India's constitutional framework of judicial review, a free press and periodic elections is designed precisely to prevent the executive from sliding into an authoritarian mode in which dissent is criminalised and power escapes popular accountability.

Synonyms

autocraticdespoticdictatorialtyrannicaltotalitariandomineering

Antonyms

democraticliberalegalitarianpermissive

🌱 Word Family

authority (n), authoritarian (n/adj), authoritarianism (n), authoritarianly (adv), authoritative (adj)

🔡 Root

Latin auctoritas (influence, command) → Old French → English authority + suffix -arian; attested 1850s.

📜 Etymology

From English "authority" (via Old French from Latin auctoritas, "influence, command") + suffix "-arian"; first attested in the 1850s.

🧠 Memory Hook

Hear "AUTHORITY" inside authorit-arian: a ruler who is all authority and no liberty, demanding you submit to his word.

🏛️ History & Culture 📖 Seen in: The Emergency & Democratic Resilience ...

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