tyranny

n 1: a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute

dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or

opposition etc.) [syn: {dictatorship}, {absolutism}, {authoritarianism},

{Caesarism}, {despotism}, {monocracy}, {one-man rule},

{shogunate}, {Stalinism}, {totalitarianism}]

2: dominance through threat of punishment and violence [syn: {absolutism},

{despotism}]