The tyranny of the open night's too rough For nature to endure.
Shak.
Tyr"ant (?), n. [OE. tirant, tiraunt, tyraunt, OF. tiran, tirant
(probably from confusion with the p. pr. of verbs), F. tyran, L.
tyrannus, Gr. &?;, originally, an absolute sovereign, but afterwards, a
severe or cruel ruler.] 1. An absolute ruler; a sovereign unrestrained
by law or constitution; a usurper of sovereignty.
Free governments [in Greece] having superseded the old hereditary
sovereignties (basilei^ai), all who obtained absolute power in a state
were called ty\rannoi, tyrants, or rather despots; — for the term
rather regards the irregular way in which the power was gained, whether
force or fraud, than the way in which it was exercised, being applied
to the mild Pisistratus, but not to the despotic kings of Persia.
However, the word soon came to imply reproach, and was then used like
our tyrant. Liddell & Scott.
2. Specifically, a monarch, or other ruler or master, who uses power to
oppress his subjects; a person who exercises unlawful authority, or
lawful authority in an unlawful manner; one who by taxation, injustice,
or cruel punishment, or the demand of unreasonable services, imposes
burdens and hardships on those under his control, which law and
humanity do not authorize, or which the purposes of government do not
require; a cruel master; an oppressor. "This false tyrant, this Nero."
Chaucer.
Love, to a yielding heart, is a king, but to a resisting, is a tyrant.
Sir P. Sidney.
3. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of American clamatorial birds
belonging to the family Tyrannidæ; — called also tyrant bird.
These birds are noted for their irritability and pugnacity, and for the
courage with which they attack rapacious birds far exceeding them in
size and strength. They are mostly plain-colored birds, but often have
a bright-colored crown patch. A few species, as the scissorstail, are
handsomely colored. The kingbird and pewee are familiar examples.
Tyrant flycatcher (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of tyrants which
have a flattened bill, toothed at the tip, and resemble the true
flycatchers in habits. The Acadian flycatcher (Empidonax Acadicus) and
the vermilion flycatcher (Pyrocephalus rubineus) are examples. — Tyrant
shrike (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of American tyrants of the
genus Tyrannus having a strong toothed bill and resembling the strikes
in habits. The kingbird is an example.
Ty"rant (?), v. i. To act like a tyrant; to play the tyrant; to
tyrannical. [Obs.] Fuller.