iron fist

[ ahy-ern fist ]

noun

authority or power wielded in a cruel, dictatorial, or repressive way: The lecture described the torments that befell many artists under the iron fist of Stalin.This tyrant ruled the country with an iron fist until he was finally deposed and executed.

Other words from iron fist

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

The former believed in the role of the state as a provider, while the latter favored an iron fist approach to governance.
How WWI Produced the Holocaust | J.P. O’Malley | November 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Doctor Strange, iron fist, Black Panther and The Runaways are other projects on the horizon.
Fear of a Minority Superhero: Marvel's Obsession with White Guys Saving the World | Marlow Stern | August 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The position of House Majority Whip is one that he ruled with an iron fist for over a decade.
Beau Willimon on Most Shocking Twists in ‘House of Cards’ Season 2 | Andrew Romano | February 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Mugabe is still in firm control and still ruling with an iron-fist.
Searching Hard for Mugabe’s Conscience | James Kirchick | January 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
It has recently ruled over the country with an iron fist, increasingly solidifying its noose on civil rights and governance.
Mohamed Morsi’s Bittersweet Egypt Victory | Vivian Salama | June 24, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST

The ideal man for a military government, his is an iron fist; but if the fist were of softer stuff, all Belgium would be in chaos.
Behind the Scenes in Warring Germany | Edward Lyell Fox
The uplifted glass came down with a crash and his iron fist closed on her right hand.
The Fall of a Nation | Thomas Dixon
The "iron fist" and the "shining sword" were to break in the doors of those who opposed a German-made peace.
A School History of the Great War | Albert E. McKinley, Charles A. Coulomb, and Armand J. Gerson
The blind man clung close to me, holding me in one iron fist, and leaning almost more of his weight on me than I could carry.
Treasure Island | Robert Louis Stevenson
He had felt Brayley's iron fist before, but not with the rage behind it which now drove it into Conniston's face.
Under Handicap | Jackson Gregory

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