Standard Lemma guide

kleptocracy

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A corrupt and dishonest government or society characterised by theft and greed.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: corruptocracy, kleptarchy

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English klepto- Proto-Indo-European *kret- Ancient Greek κρᾰ́τος (krắtos) Proto-Indo-European *-h2 Proto-Indo-European *-éh2 Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh2 Proto-Hellenic *-íā Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā) Ancient Greek -κρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (-krătĭ́ā)bor. English -cracy English kleptocracy From klepto- + -cracy.

Across languages

Translations

59 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: kleptokraci — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Arabic: كْلِيبْتُقْرَاطِيَّة (klībtuqrāṭiyya) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Armenian: ավազակապետություն (avazakapetutʻyun) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Azerbaijani: kleptokratiya — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Belarusian: клептакра́тыя (kljeptakrátyja) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Bulgarian: клептокра́ция (kleptokrácija) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Catalan: cleptocràcia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Chinese Mandarin: 竊盜統治 /窃盗统治 (qièdàotǒngzhì) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Chinese Mandarin: 盜賊統治 /盗贼统治 (dàozéi tǒngzhì) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Czech: kleptokracie — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Danish: kleptokrati — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Dutch: kleptocratie — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Estonian: kleptokraatia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Finnish: kleptokratia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • French: kleptocratie — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Georgian: კლეპტოკრატია (ḳleṗṭoḳraṭia) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • German: Kleptokratie — corrupt and dishonest government
  • German: Diebesherrschaft — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Greek: κλεπτοκρατία (kleptokratía) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Hebrew: קלפטוקרטיה (kleptokrátya) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Hindi: क्लेप्टोक्रेसी (klepṭokresī) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Hindi: चोर-तंत्र (cor-tantra) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Hungarian: kleptokrácia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Icelandic: þjófræði — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Indonesian: kleptokrasi — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Italian: cleptocrazia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Japanese: 泥棒政治 — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Japanese: クレプトクラシー — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Kazakh: клептократия (kleptokratiä) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Korean: 도둑정치 (dodukjeongchi) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Kyrgyz: клептократия (kleptokratiya) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Latvian: kleptokrātija — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Lithuanian: kleptokratija — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Macedonian: клептократија (kleptokratija) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Malay: kleptokrasi — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Norwegian Bokmål: kleptokrati — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: kleptokrati — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Persian: دزدسالاری (dozdsâlâri) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Persian: کلپتوکراسی (kleptokrâsi) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Polish: kleptokracja — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Portuguese: cleptocracia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Romanian: cleptocrație — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Russian: клептокра́тия (kleptokrátija) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Serbo-Croatian: клептократија — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Serbo-Croatian: клептокрација — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Serbo-Croatian: kleptokratija — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Serbo-Croatian: kleptokracija — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Slovak: kleptokracia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Slovene: kleptokracija — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Spanish: cleptocracia — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Swedish: kleptokrati — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Tajik: клептократия (kleptokratiya) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Tajik: дуздсолорӣ (duzdsolori) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Thai: โจราธิปไตย — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Turkish: kleptokrasi — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Turkmen: kleptokratiýa — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Ukrainian: клептокра́тія (kleptokrátija) — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Uzbek: kleptokratiya — corrupt and dishonest government
  • Vietnamese: chế độ đạo tặc — corrupt and dishonest government