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diktat

diktat

noun DIK-taht Rare

Origin: German Diktat, from Latin dictatum 'something dictated'

Also means

imposed order

Usage Note

Diktat is an invariable German/Latin loanword used in Italian political and journalistic language for a one-sided, non-negotiable directive — originally the post-WWI peace terms imposed on Germany. The plural is also diktat. It carries a strongly negative, coercive connotation absent from the neutral direttiva (directive).

Examples

"Il governo ha rifiutato il diktat europeo."

Natural Translation

The government rejected the European diktat.

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