powers-that-be

A form of powers that be — The holders of power or the authorities in a given situation, especially if seen as being faceless or unreasonably bureaucratic.

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Meanings

noun
  1. alternativepluralplural onlyAlternative spelling of powers that be.
    1 more example

    On the surface, the film is a globe-trotting gross-out caper in which Nobby, who's from a hellish version of the titular Lincolnshire town ("twinned with Chernobyl"), is reunited with his long-lost brother Sebastian (Mark Strong), who has become a spy for the British secret services. That makes him a servant of the powers-that-be that have no time for Nobby and his scrounging ilk.

    2016 February 23, Robbie Collin, “Grimsby review: ' Sacha Baron Cohen's vital, venomous action movie'”, in The Daily Telegraph (London)
Cite this entry
APA

powers-that-be. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/powers-that-be

MLA

“powers-that-be.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/powers-that-be. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “powers-that-be,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/powers-that-be.

Source: powers-that-be on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.