FASCISM Synonyms: 31 Similar and Opposite Words

fascism

noun

Definition of fascism

as in tyranny

rule, control, or leadership by one person with absolute power A soaring crime rate and civil unrest were harbingers to the rise of fascism in the country.

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of fascism If anything, the film is more embarrassing than incendiary, and its unexamined message — that privileged, straight people can still fall in love under fascism — is, technically, true. — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2026 Brogin, who said at the time that the law was akin to fascism, fought the city, unsuccessfully. — Sandra McDonald, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026 Others, though—Cahun and Moore, but also Victor Brauner—saw how fascism was inextricable from patriarchal power, and sought to free themselves from the confines of gender altogether. — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 17 July 2026 Voters have already handed a good chunk of democracy itself over to nationalist, religious and ideological fascism. — Chicago Tribune, 9 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for fascism

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fascism

Noun

Now, researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have thwarted that tyranny even more profoundly, by devising an ultra-fast way to steer light, using light itself as the steering wheel.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 20 Aug. 2026
While Queen Romana projected the image of a supreme ruler who alternated between benevolence and tyranny, Didulo the person was all too human.

— Zander Sherman, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of tyranny

Noun

In 2021, the SAF and RSF worked together to overthrow the civilian Cabinet that was overseeing Sudan’s transition to democracy after 30 years of dictatorship under Omar al-Bashir.

— Mat Nashed, Christian Science Monitor, 27 Aug. 2026
Not by tightening the siege on Iran directly, but by tightening the siege on those who help this regime, this terrible dictatorship.

— Mustafa Qadri, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of dictatorship

Noun

Visual artist and historian Ranfis Suárez Ramos highlighted the importance of internet access for Cubans as a way to break the hold of totalitarianism.

— Sarah Moreno June 5, Miami Herald, 6 June 2026
His parents’ experience living under totalitarianism shaped his outlook on the world.

— Iris Kwok May 12, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026

Definition of totalitarianism

Noun

Another speaker drew attention to the alarming rise of authoritarianism in the United States.

— David Pollak, Mercury News, 25 Aug. 2026
The Gao Brothers, whose works addressed themes of authoritarianism and censorship, became famous in a time of relative openness in China and were exhibited both inside the country and abroad.

— ABC News, ABC News, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of authoritarianism

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fascination

fascism

fashion

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“Fascism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fascism. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of fascism

noun

Example Sentences

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