empire
a group of nations or peoples ruled over by an emperor, empress, or other powerful sovereign or government: usually a territory of greater extent than a kingdom, as the former British Empire, French Empire, Russian Empire, Byzantine Empire, or Roman Empire.
a government under an emperor or empress.
(often initial capital letter) the historical period during which a nation is under such a government: a history of the second French empire.
supreme power in governing; imperial power; sovereignty: The legacy of empire is complex, and always entwined with colonialism and nationalism.
supreme control; absolute sway: passion's empire over the mind.
a powerful and important enterprise or holding of large scope that is controlled by a single person, family, or group of associates: The family's shipping empire was founded 50 years ago.
(initial capital letter) a variety of apple somewhat resembling the McIntosh.
(initial capital letter) characteristic of or developed during the first French Empire, 1804–15.
(usually initial capital letter) (of women's attire and coiffures) of the style that prevailed during the first French Empire, in clothing being characterized especially by décolletage and a high waistline, coming just below the bust, from which the skirt hangs straight and loose.
(often initial capital letter) noting or pertaining to the style of architecture, furnishings, and decoration prevailing in France and imitated to a greater or lesser extent in various other countries, c1800–30: characterized by the use of delicate but elaborate ornamentation imitated from Greek and Roman examples or containing classical allusions, as animal forms for the legs of furniture, bas-reliefs of classical figures, motifs of wreaths, torches, caryatids, lyres, and urns and by the occasional use of military and Egyptian motifs and, under the Napoleonic Empire itself, of symbols alluding to Napoleon I, as bees or the letter N.
Origin of empire
1Other words for empire
Other words from empire
- in·ter·em·pire, adjective
- pre-Empire, adjective
- pro·em·pire, adjective
Words that may be confused with empire
- empire , umpire
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use empire in a sentence
Yalta was great for strolls along the sea during the Byzantine, Ottoman and Russian empires.
The grand old empires (including the ones in Africa) were all about rampant interethnic appropriation.
You Can’t ‘Steal’ a Culture: In Defense of Cultural Appropriation | John McWhorter | July 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTInstead, they had to build their empires through “culture,” “dignity,” and “determination,” through “music.”
Broadway Was Made for Tupac | Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Marcyliena Morgan | July 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut fluctuations of mere feet during its flood season could sustain the rise of empires, or hasten their fall.
Families that do build petty empires flame out, but the grand empire ruled by our churning elites burns on, evidently, forever.
His empire was of all empires the least capable of being made a great naval power.
The History of England from the Accession of James II. | Thomas Babington MacaulayPrefectures, those miniature empires, could only be filled by men of great names, or chamberlains of H.M. the emperor and king.
Juana | Honore de BalzacWe test the wind, and we shall make wind; we shall make light; we shall renew the face of empires with new industries!
Catherine de' Medici | Honore de BalzacHe had so lost himself in the dream, that it had become real, and he himself was the splendid adventurer, the maker of empires.
When Valmond Came to Pontiac, Complete | Gilbert ParkerFrom that era, it is equally worthy of the attention of those who wish for the reduction of great empires to small ones.
The Loyalists of America and Their Times, Vol. 1 of 2 | Egerton Ryerson
British Dictionary definitions for empire (1 of 2)
/ (ˈɛmpaɪə) /
an aggregate of peoples and territories, often of great extent, under the rule of a single person, oligarchy, or sovereign state
any monarchy that for reasons of history, prestige, etc, has an emperor rather than a king as head of state
the period during which a particular empire exists
supreme power; sovereignty
a large industrial organization with many ramifications, esp a multinational corporation
Origin of empire
1Other words from empire
- Related adjective: imperial
British Dictionary definitions for Empire (2 of 2)
/ (ˈɛmpaɪə) /
See British Empire
French history
the period of imperial rule in France from 1804 to 1815 under Napoleon Bonaparte
Also called: Second Empire the period from 1852 to 1870 when Napoleon III ruled as emperor
denoting, characteristic of, or relating to the British Empire
denoting, characteristic of, or relating to either French Empire, esp the first: in particular, denoting the neoclassical style of architecture and furniture and the high-waisted style of women's dresses characteristic of the period
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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