government
Americannoun
-
the political direction and control exercised over the actions of the members, citizens, or inhabitants of communities, societies, and states; direction of the affairs of a state, community, etc.; political administration.
Government is necessary to the existence of civilized society.
-
the form or system of rule by which a state, community, etc., is governed.
monarchical government; episcopal government.
-
the governing body of persons in a state, community, etc.; administration.
-
a branch or service of the supreme authority of a state or nation, taken as representing the whole.
a dam built by the government.
-
(in some parliamentary systems, as that of the United Kingdom)
-
the particular group of persons forming the cabinet at any given time.
The prime minister has formed a new government.
-
the parliament along with the cabinet.
The government has fallen.
-
-
direction; control; management; rule.
the government of one's conduct.
-
a district governed; province.
-
Grammar. the extablished usage that requires that one word in a sentence should cause another to be of a particular form.
the government of the verb by its subject.
noun
-
the exercise of political authority over the actions, affairs, etc, of a political unit, people, etc, as well as the performance of certain functions for this unit or body; the action of governing; political rule and administration
-
the system or form by which a community, etc, is ruled
tyrannical government
-
-
the executive policy-making body of a political unit, community, etc; ministry or administration
yesterday we got a new government
-
( capital when of a specific country )
the British Government
-
-
-
the state and its administration
blame it on the government
-
( as modifier )
a government agency
-
-
regulation; direction
-
grammar the determination of the form of one word by another word
Grammar
See collective noun.
Pronunciation
Normal phonological processes are reflected in a variety of pronunciations for government. Most commonly, the first of assimilates to the immediately following , with the resulting identical nasal sounds coalescing to give the pronunciation . This pronunciation is considered standard and occurs throughout the U.S. For speakers in regions where postvocalic is regularly lost, as along the Eastern Seaboard and in the South, the resulting pronunciation is or, with loss of the medial unstressed vowel, . Further assimilation, in which the labiodental , in anticipation of the bilabial quality of the following , becomes the bilabial stop , leads in the South Midland and Southern U.S. to the pronunciation . See isn't.
Other Word Forms
- countergovernment noun
- governmental adjective
- governmentally adverb
- nongovernment noun
- nongovernmental adjective
- pro-government adjective
- regovernment noun
- semigovernmental adjective
- semigovernmentally adverb
- subgovernment noun
- undergovernment noun
- ungovernmental adjective
- ungovernmentally adverb
Etymology
Origin of government
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Old French word governement. See govern, -ment
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.
The latest documents were disclosed under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was enacted after months of public and political pressure and requires the government to open its files on the late financier and Maxwell.
From Los Angeles Times
In a nearly hour-long speech that doubled as a pitch to Conservative voters at the party's convention in Calgary, Alberta, Poilievre outlined his vision for Canada's future should his party form the next government.
From BBC
It is the second such government shutdown in the past year and comes just 11 weeks after the end of the previous funding impasse which lasted 43 days, the longest in US history.
From BBC
Beijing has pledged "forceful" measures to boost demand in coming years, with some key policies expected to be announced in March with the release of the government's newest "five-year plan".
From Barron's
If the House approves the package as expected early next week, funding would be restored within days, limiting the practical impact of the shutdown on government services, contractors and federal workers.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
