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oligarchy

Pronunciation: /ˈɒlɪgɑːki/
Definition of oligarchy

noun (plural oligarchies)

  • a small group of people having control of a country or organization:the ruling oligarchy of military men around the president
  • a country governed by an oligarchy: he believed that Britain was an oligarchy
  • [mass noun] government by an oligarchy.

Derivatives

oligarchic

Pronunciation: /-ˈgɑːkɪk/
adjective

oligarchical

Pronunciation: /-ˈgɑːkɪk(ə)l/
adjective

oligarchically

Pronunciation: /-ˈgɑːkɪk(ə)li/
adverb

Origin:

late 15th century: from Greek oligarkhia, from oligoi 'few' and arkhein 'to rule'

oligarchy in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of oligarchy in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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