I. (ˌ)tō|talə|terēən, -|ta(a)r-, -|tār- sometimes |tōd. ə lə|- or -ōt ə l- adjective
Etymology: total (I) + -itarian (as in authoritarian )
1.
a. : of or relating to centralized control by an autocratic leader or hierarchy : authoritarian , dictatorial
totalitarian theory and practice are solidly opposed to any institutional division of power — C.J.Friedrich
fascism … is totalitarian by necessity — Carlo Sforza
especially : despotic
Sparta's militarist totalitarian dictatorship — Peter Viereck
b. : of or relating to a political regime based on subordination of the individual to the state and strict control of all aspects of the life and productive capacity of the nation especially by coercive measures (as censorship and terrorism)
the limited state, the agent of man, has been converted to the totalitarian state, the master of man — C.P.Patterson
will Europe in the future be totalitarian and collectivist, or will it be democratic and individualist — C.J.Friedrich
2.
a. : advocating or characteristic of totalitarianism
totalitarian liberal
the totalitarian concept that the end justifies the means — J.W.Fulbright
cracks down on free speech and free press with totalitarian ease — Time
seize power … by force and make Greece Communist, with the totalitarian liquidation of all opponents — Sir Winston Churchill
b. : completely regulated by the state especially as an aid to national mobilization in an emergency
it accomplishes a totalitarian control of atomic energy for the time being — A.H.Vandenberg †1951
almost all governments adopt totalitarian measures in time of war — John Gunther
c. : exercising autocratic powers : tending toward monopoly
by its very nature … religion is totalitarian — J.S.Roucek
antitrust legislation … to reverse the trend toward the totalitarian collectivism of big business — Journal of Politics
3. : total 3c
a totalitarian war, striking at civilians more than at armies — New York Times
II. noun
( -s )
: an advocate or practitioner of totalitarianism