How to Use tyranny in a Sentence

tyranny

noun
  • The refugees were fleeing tyranny.
  • The king sought an absolute tyranny over the colonies.
  • He was dedicated to ending the tyranny of slavery.
  • She felt lost in the bureaucratic tyrannies of the university system.
  • This mantra, which is kind of a tyranny, get eight hours or else.
    — Taylor Wilson, USA Today, 25 July 2025
  • Wealth was once a mere by-product of tyranny.
    — Max Hastings, Twin Cities, 11 Jan. 2026
  • Russia is a tyranny, which makes some of us feel naive.
    — Max Hastings, Twin Cities, 11 Jan. 2026
  • The tyranny of the clock, and having to be on time for things.
    — Rachel Deutsch july 29, Literary Hub, 29 July 2025
  • Killing the tyrant doesn’t assure the tyranny will end.
    — Nolan Finley, Twin Cities, 6 Mar. 2026
  • There’s the tyranny of clean and, atop that, the specter of reproach.
    — Washington Post, 7 Feb. 2021
  • This mode will also free Ford from the tyranny of gas prices.
    — Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic, 20 May 2021
  • America would stand as one to help end the spread of tyranny.
    — Los Angeles Times, 2 Mar. 2022
  • Trump is taking the country on a path to tyranny.
    — George Packer, The Atlantic, 27 Jan. 2026
  • There might not be so much pressure, or the tyranny of desire.
    — Murr Brewster, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 Jan. 2022
  • And some of them believe that the only way to fight tyranny is with force.
    — Michael Harriot, The Root, 16 Aug. 2017
  • For those who cleave to beauty's tyranny and are happy in its lair.
    — Melinda Stevens, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Dec. 2019
  • At this gathering, no one cares whether the tyranny is red or black.
    — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 15 Oct. 2021
  • That’s no worse a form of tyranny than rationing water on a lifeboat.
    — Sebastian Junger, WSJ, 13 May 2021
  • Who viewed guidance as tyranny.
    — Heidi Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026
  • Our founders showed us how to fight tyranny and suppression of speech.
    — Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 27 July 2025
  • They are trapped in poverty by their culture, which is a form of tyranny.
    — Wanjiru Njoya, Orange County Register, 13 Feb. 2024
  • How can merit become a kind of tyranny?
    — Belinda Luscombe, Time, 13 Oct. 2025
  • All call for their countrymen to fight against tyranny.
    — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2026
  • And who doesn't, once in a while, need to be freed from the tyranny of certainty?
    — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 19 Sep. 2025
  • That is not tyranny; that is a fair measure of the will of the citizens.
    — Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 18 Sep. 2024
  • Yet there is today a very real threat of a tyranny in the vein of James.
    — Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 20 Aug. 2024
  • Someone had to stand up to the tyranny — to disturb it a little, or a lot.
    — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 12 June 2023
  • Of course, the titular Boys will try their best to end his tyranny.
    — Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2026
  • Throwing off the shackles of tyranny often ends in new forms of bondage.
    — William A. Galston, WSJ, 30 Mar. 2021
  • If free speech is lost even in America, tyranny is all that lies ahead.
    — Paul Rudnick, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tyranny.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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