Tyrant - tyrannous

The noun tyrant and its related adjective tyrannous look the same and share their origin and meaning - but they are pronounced differently.

• The noun 'a tyrant' has a first vowel like that of 'tire', 'line' and 'sign': 'TIRE-ant', IPA: /ˈtaɪ rÉ™nt/.
• In the adjective tyrannous, the first vowel is like that in 'sit', 'fit' and 'bit': 'TIRR-en-es', IPA: /tɪr É™n É™s/. The same is true of other words derived from tyrant:
  • tyrannical, an adjective meaning 'in the manner of a tyrant';
  • tyrannize, a verb meaning 'to behave like a tyrant', and in particular 'to rule harshly over'; and
  • tyranny, an abstract noun meaning 'the rule of a tyrant', 'bullying behaviour typical of a tyrant', or in the most general and least emotional sense, 'the form of government characterised by an autocratic ruler'.
  • tyrranicide, a noun meaning the crime of, or a person committing the crime of, killing a tyrant'. (Some republicans regard this action as no crime. The tyrannicide brief, by Geoffrey Robertson, published in 2005 by Chatto & Windus in London, recounts the trials first of Charles I, in 1649, which led to his execution; and second of the prosecutor, John Cooke in 1660 (after the Restoration) on a charge of high treason, which led in turn to his execution.)

• • Etymological note: The meaning of tyrant can be confusing. It has certainly changed over time. It is a Greek word whose general sense is 'an individual exercising the power of government'. It dates back as far as the
    • 7th century BCE, when (τυραννοι - tyrannoi) were absolute rulers who had usurped power, although by and large for the city-states over which they ruled. This was the 'Age of the Tyrants' in the 7th and 6th centuries BC.
    • So, until the earlier part of the classical period, the word (τυραννοσ turannos) did not have the negative connotations of our word 'tyrant'.