A particularly cruel and oppressive ruler; a tyrant of exceptional severity and authority.
From 'arch-' (chief) plus 'tyrant' (from Greek 'tyrannos', an absolute ruler). The compound appears in political and historical texts to describe the worst forms of tyrannical rule.
Political writers and revolutionaries used 'archtyrant' to describe absolute monarchs—it's a term loaded with judgment. The existence of the word shows how people throughout history needed language to criticize oppression!
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