kleptocracy
[ klep-tok-ruh-see ]
/ klɛpˈtɒk rə si /
noun, plural klep·toc·ra·cies.
a government or state in which those in power exploit national resources and steal; rule by a thief or thieves.
Origin of kleptocracy
OTHER WORDS FROM kleptocracy
klep·to·crat [klep-tuh-krat] /ˈklɛp təˌkræt/, noun klep·to·crat·ic [klep-tuh-krat-ik] /ˌklɛp təˈkræt ɪk/, adjectiveWords nearby kleptocracy
kleist,
klemperer,
kleopatra,
klepht,
klepto,
kleptocracy,
kleptocrat,
kleptocratic,
kleptomania,
kleptomaniac,
klesha
Example sentences from the Web for kleptocracy
Proceeds from its North Sea drilling rigs will insure corruption and kleptocracy on a Nigerian scale.
Up to a Point: A Free Scotland Would Be a Hilarious Disaster |P. J. O’Rourke |September 13, 2014 |DAILY BEASTHow about staging large-scale NATO military maneuvers at the border and freezing the assets of the kleptocracy?
Indeed, a condition of rampant, endemic political corruption is known as a “kleptocracy”—literally, “rule by thieves.”
Ehud Olmert’s Sentencing Won’t Be a Day of Reckoning for Israel’s Leaders |Alon Ben-Meir |May 15, 2014 |DAILY BEASTBut no political parties are immune to the infection of kleptocracy in Ukraine.
Europe, Stunned by Reckless Russia, Mistrusts Feckless Ukrainian Leaders |James Kirchick |March 24, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
British Dictionary definitions for kleptocracy
kleptocracy
cleptocracy
/ (ˌklɛpˈtɒkrəsɪ) /
noun plural -cies
informal
a government where officials are politically corrupt and financially self-interested
Word Origin for kleptocracy
C20: from
klepto (
mania) +
-cracy