CEFR C1

totalitarian

adjective

Meaning

Relating to a system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state.

Examples

  • The novel depicts a chilling vision of a totalitarian society where surveillance is constant.
  • Historians often study the rise of totalitarian movements in the early 20th century.

Synonyms: authoritarian, dictatorial, autocratic, despotic