tyrannize
/ˈtɪrənʌɪz
/(also tyrannise)
verb [with object]
Rule or treat (someone) despotically or cruelly: she tyrannized her family [no object]: he tyrannizes over the servants...
- The ‘rule of law’ would give way to a ‘rule of men’ who tyrannized their wives and their compatriots.
- Every time Duritz tyrannizes her, Janet responds with amusing riffs.
- It doesn't have any responsibility to make war to get rid of somebody who tyrannizes his own people.
Synonyms
domineer over, dominate, order about/around, dictate to, browbeat, intimidate, bully, ride roughshod over, lord it over, keep someone under one's thumb;
persecute, victimize, torment;
oppress, rule with a rod of iron, rule with an iron hand, rule despotically, suppress, repress, crush, subjugate, hold down, keep down, grind down, trample underfoot, enslave, bring someone to their knees, treat harshly, treat brutally
informal push around
Origin
Late 15th century: from French tyranniser, from tyran 'tyrant'.