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empire building

American  

noun

  1. the plans, activities, achievements, etc., of an empire builder.


Etymology

Origin of empire building

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Carrie Canham from Ceredigion Museum in Aberystwyth said the artefacts were the first of their kind to be found in west Wales and "highlight Ceredigion's significance in Emperor Domitian Caesar Augustus's empire building".

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

One reason the Monroe doctrine and empire building went out of fashion was that colonies and client states wanted out.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 5, 2026

Since then, McMahon has continued his empire building.

From Washington Post • Apr. 7, 2023

Bismarck originally believed empire building was a foolish venture that cost more than it returned.

From Textbooks • Dec. 14, 2022

Generations of effort and centuries of time have gone into the empire building process.

From Civilization and Beyond Learning from History by Nearing, Scott

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