English → Latin
“tyrant” in Latin
tyrannusruler, monarch; tyrant, despotcrūdēlisunfeeling, rude; ruthless, cruel, mercilesssaevusfurious, ferocious, fierce, violent, barbarous, cruel, savageviolentusforcible, violent, vehement; impetuous; boisterous
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
tyrant
In the ancient sense, an absolute ruler, especially one who had made himself master of a state hitherto free, not necessarily including the idea of cruelty or injustice, tyrannus (Vid: Bremi ad Nep., Milt., 8, 3).
An absolute ruler (in the Roman sense), dominus. (The words are found in this connection and order.) dominus et tyrannus: a cruel tyrant, tyrannus gravis, crudelis (Cic.), saevus, violentus (Liv.).
In a wider sense, a cruel, domineering person, homo superbus, crudelis, saevus. To play the tyrant, in suos saevire: suos crudeliter, superbe tractare.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for tyrant?
- The usual Latin words for “tyrant” are tyrannus, crūdēlis, saevus; also violentus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.