tyrant

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A ruler who uses power in a cruel and unjust way.

   The country suffered for decades under a brutal tyrant.

2. 2
   noun

   Any person who treats others harshly and cruelly by abusing their power.

   Their boss was a tyrant who shouted at everyone.

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Simplified etymology

Tyrant comes from ancient Greek turannos, originally meaning someone who seized power unlawfully rather than necessarily ruling cruelly. In English, however, the word has always referred to a cruel or oppressive ruler.

From Middle English tyraunt, tiraunt, tyrant, tyrante, from Old French tyrant, from the addition of a terminal -t to tiran (cp. French tyran) via a back-formation related to the development of French present participles out of the Latin -ans form, from Latin tyrannus (“despot”), from Ancient Greek τύραννος (túrannos, “usurper, monarch, despot”), of uncertain origin.

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