the principle or practice of a political system in which unrestricted power is vested in a monarch, dictator, etc; despotism any theory which holds that truth or moral or aesthetic value is absolute and universal and not relative to individual or social differences
Compare relativismthe doctrine that reality is unitary and unchanging and that change and diversity are mere illusion
See also ,monism 2 pluralism 5b
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
ab•so•lut•ism
(ab′sə lo̅o̅ tiz′əm),USA pronunciation n.
ab ′so•lut′ist, n., adj.
ab′so•lu•tis ′tic, adj.
ab′so•lu•tis′ti•cal•ly, adv.
- Governmentthe principle or the exercise of complete and unrestricted power in government.
- any theory holding that values, principles, etc., are absolute and not relative, dependent, or changeable.
- 1745–55
ab′so•lu•tis ′tic, adj.
ab′so•lu•tis′ti•cal•ly, adv.
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged . totalitarianism.
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'absolutism' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):