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Glite Dictionary
tyrannicide

tyrannicide

1 9.9
The killing of a cruel ruler or a person who kills one
  • noun
  • /tɪˈrænɪˌsaɪd/
  • Formal
: tiranicidio
  • The tyrannicides were certainly conceived of as portraits, although they were not set up by Harmodios and Aristogeiton.

Examples

  • During the week, a noted scholar on the Vietnamese tradition of tyrannicide has come to the city to lecture to the Vietnamese community.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • The young assassins had sought religious guidance from him—a writ for tyrannicide.

    Academic text (2001)

  • The act of tyrannicide has been debated throughout history as a justified means of overthrowing oppressive rulers.

  • Some consider tyrannicide acceptable if it frees people from a cruel government.

  • In ancient Greece, the story of tyrannicide was celebrated as heroic when citizens rose against their oppressors.

Surface Forms

tyrannicide singular
tyrannicides plural

Morphology

tyrannicide = tyrant (semi-transparent) = tyrann + cide

The word is built from the classical combining form tyrann- meaning 'tyrant' plus -cide, but the combining form is not a standalone English word and the overall form is somewhat learned.

Etymology

Tyrannicide comes from the Greek word tyrannos meaning 'tyrant' and the old Latin ending -cide meaning 'to kill', as in suicide and homicide. So, tyrannicide is the act of killing a tyrant or the person who kills one.