governor

American  

[guhv-er-ner, -uh-ner] / ˈgʌv ər nər, -ə nər /

noun

• governors
  plural

1. the executive head of a state in the U.S.

2. a person charged with the direction or control of an institution, society, etc..

   the governors of a bank; the governor of a prison.

3. Also called governor general. the representative of the crown, as in the Commonwealth of Nations.

4. a ruler or chief magistrate appointed to govern a province, town, fort, or the like.

5. Machinery. a device for maintaining uniform speed regardless of changes of load, as by regulating the supply of fuel or working fluid.

6. British Informal.

   1. one's father.

   2. one's employer.

   3. any man of superior rank or status.

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governor British  

/ ˈɡʌvənə /

noun

1. a person who governs

2. the ruler or chief magistrate of a colony, province, etc

3. the representative of the Crown in a British colony

4. the senior administrator or head of a society, prison, etc

5. the chief executive of any state in the US

6. a device that controls the speed of an engine, esp by regulating the supply of fuel, etc, either to limit the maximum speed or to maintain a constant speed

7. Also called: head. grammar

   1. a word in a phrase or clause that is the principal item and gives the function of the whole, as hat in the big red hat

   2. ( as modifier )

      a governor noun

8. informal a name or title of respect for a father, employer, etc

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Pronunciation

In governor, the process of dissimilation—the tendency for neighboring like sounds to become unlike or for one of them to disappear entirely—commonly results in the loss of the first of , producing the pronunciation . This pronunciation is heard even in regions where postvocalic is not usually dropped. A further loss, of the medial unstressed vowel, results in . All three pronunciations are standard. See colonel, February, library.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subgovernor
  noun
• undergovernor
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• governors
  plural

Etymology

Origin of governor

1250–1300; Middle English governour < Old French governeor, gouverneur < Latin gubernātōrem, accusative of gubernātor, equivalent to gubernā(re) to steer, govern + -tor -tor

Explanation

A governor leads a state government, just like a president leads a national government. If you know that governing means to be in charge of something, that should help you remember what a governor is. Just as mayors run cities and presidents and prime ministers run countries, governors run states. A governor is elected for a term, has a vice governor, and deals with a legislature, just like the U.S. President. Governor is a very important title in the U.S., and many governors — such as Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush — have gone on to become U.S. presidents.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

governor governors

Records are available, however, for Abbott’s security costs as governor and for Lt.

From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026

The former New York governor signed on as co-chairman of OKXICE, a joint venture between U.S. exchange powerhouse ICE and OKX that plans to tokenize stocks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

The institution's deputy governor, Soledad Núñez, warned in September that by 2028 that could rise to one million.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Russia has not confirmed the woman died of plague and the governor of the local region said Thursday no health issues were detected after all her contacts were traced.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

In late October 1925, he was meeting with the governor of Oklahoma, discreetly discussing the case.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

The concept was developed by Ynysowen Community Primary School headteacher Simone Roden, along with Edwards who is vice chair of governors at the school.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

While the presidential election is in the spotlight, Brazil's nearly 160 million registered voters are also electing lawmakers, governors, and some senators.

From Barron's ● Oct. 3, 2026

Barabak: Pressed on how much housing California would build under his administration, Hilton demurred, saying there have been too many “top-down targets” previous governors have failed to meet.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Both camps last week agreed to bury the hatchet—for now—as all of the party’s eight state governors agreed to write a joint letter that didn’t mention Merz by name but expressed support for the chancellor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

Several governors who had earlier preached a “go along” attitude now dug in their heels.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson