English Dictionary

POTENTATE

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IPA (US): 

 Dictionary entry overview: What does potentate mean? 

POTENTATE (noun)
  The noun POTENTATE has 1 sense:

1. a ruler who is unconstrained by lawplay

  Familiarity information: POTENTATE used as a noun is very rare.


 Dictionary entry details 


POTENTATE (noun)


Sense 1

Meaning:

A ruler who is unconstrained by law

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

dictator; potentate

Hypernyms ("potentate" is a kind of...):

ruler; swayer (a person who rules or commands)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "potentate"):

shogun (a hereditary military dictator of Japan; the shoguns ruled Japan until the revolution of 1867-68)

strongman (a powerful political figure who rules by the exercise of force or violence)

autocrat; despot; tyrant (a cruel and oppressive dictator)

Instance hyponyms:

Duvalier; Francois Duvalier; Papa Doc (oppressive Haitian dictator (1907-1971))

Baby Doc; Duvalier; Jean-Claude Duvalier (son and successor of Francois Duvalier as president of Haiti; he was overthrown by a mass uprising in 1986 (born in 1951))

El Caudillo; Francisco Franco; Franco; General Franco (Spanish general whose armies took control of Spain in 1939 and who ruled as a dictator until his death (1892-1975))

Adolf Hitler; Der Fuhrer; Hitler (German Nazi dictator during World War II (1889-1945))

Benito Mussolini; Il Duce; Mussolini (Italian fascist dictator (1883-1945))

Tojo; Tojo Eiki; Tojo Hideki (Japanese army officer who initiated the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and who assumed dictatorial control of Japan during World War II; he was subsequently tried and executed as a war criminal (1884-1948))


 Context examples 


It is then the interest of the enemies of this potentate to secure and publish this letter, so as to make a breach between his country and ours?

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The letter, then, is from a certain foreign potentate who has been ruffled by some recent Colonial developments of this country.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The letter—for it was a letter from a foreign potentate—was received six days ago.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)



 Learn English with... Proverbs 
"In for a dime, in for a dollar." (English proverb)

"The word of the old, and the gun of the young." (Albanian proverb)

"Will take one to the water and bring him back thirsty." (Armenian proverb)

"Think before acting and whilst acting still think." (Dutch proverb)



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