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totalitarianism - 3 dictionary results

to⋅tal⋅i⋅tar⋅i⋅an⋅ism

  [toh-tal-i-tair-ee-uh-niz-uhm]
Use totalitarianism in a Sentence
–noun
1. the practices and principles of a totalitarian regime.
2. absolute control by the state or a governing branch of a highly centralized institution.
3. the character or quality of an autocratic or authoritarian individual, group, or government: the totalitarianism of the father.
Origin:
1920–25; totalitarian + -ism

Related forms:
to⋅tal⋅i⋅tar⋅i⋅an⋅ist, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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to·tal·i·tar·i·an   (tō-tāl'ĭ-târ'ē-ən)   
adj.  Of, relating to, being, or imposing a form of government in which the political authority exercises absolute and centralized control over all aspects of life, the individual is subordinated to the state, and opposing political and cultural expression is suppressed: "A totalitarian regime crushes all autonomous institutions in its drive to seize the human soul" (Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.)
n.  A practitioner or supporter of such a government.

[total + (author)itarian.]
to·tal'i·tar'i·an·ism n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

totalitarianism [(toh-tal-uh-tair-ee-uh-niz-uhm)]

Domination by a government of all political, social, and economic activities in a nation. Totalitarianism is a phenomenon of the twentieth century: earlier forms of despotism and autocracy lacked the technical capacity to control every aspect of life. The term is applied both to fascist governments (see fascism) and to many forms of communism.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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