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Despot comes from the Greek despotes, which roughly means " master " or " one with power ", and it has been used to translate a wide variety of titles and positions.

It was used to describe the unlimited power and authority of the Pharaohs of Egypt, employed in the Byzantine court as a title of nobility, used by the rulers of Byzantine vassal states, and adopted as a title of the Byzantine Emperors.

Thus, despot is found to have different meanings and interpretations at various times in history and can not be described by a single definition.

This is similar to the other Greek titles basileus and autokrator, which, along with despot, have been used at various times to describe everything from a local chieftain to a simple ruler, king or emperor.