Thesaurus results for POTENTATES

potentates

noun

plural of potentate

as in rulers

one who rules over a people with a sole, supreme, and usually hereditary authority Charles inherited the position of potentate of the Holy Roman Empire from his grandfather, as well that of king of Spain from his father

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of potentates With 775 rooms, the palace also provides office space for the royal bureaucracy and hosts lavish state dinners for visiting presidents and potentates. — CBS News, 26 June 2026 Biden put this sentiment into action by working with Netanyahu despite serious moral and political failures in Gaza, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on NATO expansion, and with Gulf potentates on the region’s security architecture. — James Jeffrey, Foreign Affairs, 13 Nov. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for potentates

Noun

Two lasers replace hardware Optical frequency combs work much like rulers for light.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026
To varying degrees, respondents in these countries—Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Saudia Arabia, and Turkey—expressed an increasing preference for liberal values, even as their rulers sought to suppress popular demands for democratic change.

— Mansoor Moaddel, Foreign Affairs, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of rulers

Noun

Against that backdrop, the royal visit signals that Spain is shedding its longstanding reluctance to send its monarchs to the exclaves, Amirah-Fernández said.

— JOSEPH WILSON, Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026
Columbus also sought riches and treasures to gift the monarchs.

— Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of monarchs

Noun

Mick and Kip climb out of the car and stretch at their leisure like a couple of young kings.

— George Saunders, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
How far might a nation go that had no kings to depose, no entrenched hierarchies to uproot, a country so young and iconoclastic and resource-rich?

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of kings

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potentate

potentates

potential

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“Potentates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/potentates. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of potentates

noun

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