Dictionary


au•thor•i•tar•i•an



Pronunciation: (u-thôr"i-târ'ē-un, u-thor"-), [key]
—adj.
1. favoring complete obedience or subjection to authority as opposed to individual freedom: authoritarian principles; authoritarian attitudes.
2. of or pertaining to a governmental or political system, principle, or practice in which individual freedom is held as completely subordinate to the power or authority of the state, centered either in one person or a small group that is not constitutionally accountable to the people.
3. exercising complete or almost complete control over the will of another or of others: an authoritarian parent.

—n.
a person who favors or acts according to authoritarian principles.

Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.

authoressauthoritative
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