dystopia
noun
dys·to·pia
(ˌ)dis-ˈtō-pē-ə 
1
: an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives
There's almost a flavor of science fiction to the scenes Chilson describes, as though he were giving us a glimpse into a 21st-century dystopia of mad egoism and hurtling hulks of metal.—
Adam Goodheart
Adam GoodheartOver the course of the movie, the late-60's ideal of togetherness turns into a dystopia of violence, revulsion and finally death.—John Leland
John Leland2
: anti-utopia sense 2
writing a dystopia
… leaping across the century to the 1990's to attempt a dystopia about the disintegration of Australian democracy into startling, irreversible despotism.—Pearl K. Bell
Pearl K. BellExamples of dystopia in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
None had terribly high stakes conflicts, at least by Hollywood action standards; there weren’t nuclear emergencies or car chases or creative dystopias.
—Kathy Wang
july 14, Literary Hub, 14 July 2025
Richard Sutherland Lakeland America has become a dystopia A dystopia is a community where the order of the day is to bring servitude, misery, poverty, inequality, injustice and suffering.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 July 2025
Cultural or behavioral changes can signal a dystopia even more radically than a technology or a gadget.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 3 July 2025
Every good dystopia is a reflection of real-world politics; Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games after seeing the war in Iraq juxtaposed with reality TV, and The Handmaid’s Tale stitches Gilead from real atrocities governments have committed against women.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 14 Apr. 2025
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Kathy Wang
july 14, Literary Hub, 14 July 2025
Richard Sutherland Lakeland America has become a dystopia A dystopia is a community where the order of the day is to bring servitude, misery, poverty, inequality, injustice and suffering.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 July 2025
Cultural or behavioral changes can signal a dystopia even more radically than a technology or a gadget.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 3 July 2025
Every good dystopia is a reflection of real-world politics; Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games after seeing the war in Iraq juxtaposed with reality TV, and The Handmaid’s Tale stitches Gilead from real atrocities governments have committed against women.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 14 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dystopia
Cite this Entry
“Dystopia.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dystopia. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
dystopia
noun
dys·to·pia
dis-ˈtō-pē-ə
: malposition of an anatomical part
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