oligarchy
noun
ol·i·gar·chy
| \ ˈä-lə-ˌgär-kē
, ˈō-
\
, ˈō-
\
plural oligarchies
Definition of oligarchy
1
: government by the few
The corporation is ruled by oligarchy.
2
: a government in which a small group exercises control especially for corrupt and selfish purposes
a military oligarchy was established in the country
also
: a group exercising such control
An oligarchy ruled the nation.
3
: an organization under oligarchic control
That country is an oligarchy.
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Examples of oligarchy in a Sentence
Their nation is an oligarchy.
An oligarchy rules their nation.
The corporation is ruled by oligarchy.
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Recent Examples on the Web
After all the movement, the Warriors and LeBron James no longer lead an attention oligarchy. — Jacob Feldman, SI.com, "NBA Schedule Makers Must Sort Out A Shuffled League for the 2019–20 Season," 22 July 2019 The resurgence of anti-republican measures in the laboratories of oligarchy, and the Roberts Court’s unwillingness to intervene, cry out for alternatives. — Matt Ford, The New Republic, "Make the Guarantee Clause Great Again," 17 July 2019 Is this just the messy forward march of democracy, or evidence of a malign techno-oligarchy? — Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, "Trump’s Very Big, Very Important White House Social-Media Summit," 11 July 2019 If the Legislature can create oligarchies in any field, it’s crony capitalism. — Dara Kam, orlandosentinel.com, "Medical marijuana: Florida court strikes down ‘oligopoly’," 10 July 2019 So much for a next generation of players ready to unseat the oligarchy. — Jon Wertheim, SI.com, "Eleven Years Later, Federer and Nadal to Meet at Wimbledon Once Again," 10 July 2019 We are now given over to the worst of everything the Founders feared, an oligarchy allied with shadowy foreign autocrats, maneuvering behind readily fabricated crowds and demagogues. — Kevin Baker, Harper's magazine, "The Crisis of Our Constitution," 10 Jan. 2019 Just as oligarchy was government by a few powerful nobles, oligopoly is a market dominated by a few powerful businesses, usually corporations. — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, "Real World Economics: Playing monopoly is more than just rolling the dice," 16 June 2019 Merging fundamental distinctions between corporations and human beings creates the very risk of a dynamic free society collapsing into an oligarchy that the Constitution seeks to prevent. — WSJ, "Law, Dartmouth and Corporate Personhood," 10 Feb. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'oligarchy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for oligarchy
oligarchy
noun
English Language Learners Definition of oligarchy
: a country, business, etc., that is controlled by a small group of people
: the people that control a country, business, etc.
: government or control by a small group of people
See the full definition for oligarchy in the English Language Learners Dictionary
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