govern
To make and administer the public policy and affairs of; to exercise sovereign authority in.
Example
“The old king governed the land wisely.”
Other meanings
To exercise political authority; to run a government.
To control the actions or behavior of; to keep under control; to restrain.
“Govern yourselves like civilized people.”
Synonyms
- rule
Related words
- cogovern
- e-govern
- governable
- governate
- governee
- governless
- misgovern
- overgovern
- self-govern
Word history
From Ancient Greek "κυβερνάω" (to steer, drive, govern).
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “govern” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.