[tyr.an.ny] n, pl -nies [ME tyrannie, fr. MF, fr. ML tyrannia, fr. L tyrannus tyrant] (14c) 1: oppressive power "every form of ~ over the mind of man --Thomas Jefferson"; esp: oppressive power exerted by government "the ~ of a police state"
2. a: a government in which absolute power is vested in a single ruler; esp: one characteristic of an ancient Greek city-state b: the office, authority, and administration of a tyrant
3: a rigorous condition imposed by some outside agency or force "living under the ~ of the clock --Dixon Wecter"
4: a tyrannical act