government

[ guhv-ern-muhnt, ‐er-muhnt ]

/ ˈgʌv ərn mənt, ‐ər mənt /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: government / governmentally / governmental on Thesaurus.com

noun

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.

political science.

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.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of government

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Old French word governement.See govern, -ment

grammar notes for government

See collective noun.

how to pronounce government

Normal phonological processes are reflected in a variety of pronunciations for government. Most commonly, the first

[n] /n/ of

[guhv-ern-muhnt] /ˈgʌv ərn mənt/ assimilates to the immediately following

[m], /m/, with the resulting identical nasal sounds coalescing to give the pronunciation

[guhv-er-muhnt]. /ˈgʌv ər mənt/. This pronunciation is considered standard and occurs throughout the U.S. For speakers in regions where postvocalic

[r] /r/ is regularly lost, as along the Eastern Seaboard and in the South, the resulting pronunciation is

[guhv-uh-muhnt] /ˈgʌv ə mənt/ or, with loss of the medial unstressed vowel,

[guhv-muhnt]. /ˈgʌv mənt/. Further assimilation, in which the labiodental

[v], /v/, in anticipation of the bilabial quality of the following

[m], /m/, becomes the bilabial stop

[b], /b/, leads in the South Midland and Southern U.S. to the pronunciation

[guhb-muhnt]. /ˈgʌb mənt/. See isn't.

OTHER WORDS FROM government

gov·ern·men·tal

[guhv-ern-men-tl, ‐er-men‐], /ˌgʌv ərnˈmɛn tl, ‐ərˈmɛn‐/, adjectivegov·ern·men·tal·ly, adverbcoun·ter·gov·ern·ment, nounnon·gov·ern·ment, noun

non·gov·ern·men·tal, adjectivepro-gov·ern·ment, adjectivere·gov·ern·ment, nounsem·i·gov·ern·men·tal, adjectivesem·i·gov·ern·men·tal·ly, adverbsub·gov·ern·ment, nounun·der·gov·ern·ment, nounun·gov·ern·men·tal, adjectiveun·gov·ern·men·tal·ly, adverb

Words nearby government

gov., govern, Governador Valadares, governance, governess, government, governmentalism, governmentese, Government House, government-in-exile, government issue

How to use government in a sentence

Unlike government funding, donations come with minimal accountability and no guaranteed public oversight.
Can Billionaires Really Save Us from Climate Disaster?|Heather Hansman|February 12, 2021|Outside Online
Canopy Growth, a Canadian cannabis company, said it is accelerating its US growth strategy based on expectations of “significant reform” led by the Democratic party now that it controls two branches of government.
Canada’s largest cannabis company is turning its attention to the US|Karen Ho|February 11, 2021|Quartz
Coastal peasants and Afromestizos farmers continued to fight for independence from the central government.
The problem of environmental racism in Mexico today is rooted in history|Jayson Porter|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
In an economy where governments are printing money hand over fist, people want a more secure place to put their assets.
Bitcoin’s Blowing Up, and That’s Good News for Human Rights. Here’s Why|Vanessa Bates Ramirez|February 10, 2021|Singularity Hub

The good part about it, if you would call it that, is that it is impossible to imagine how the government would be able to block a lot of this harmful speech.
Twenty-Six Words Created the Internet. What Will It Take to Save It?|Stephen Engelberg|February 9, 2021|ProPublica
A few years back, designer John Galliano was fined by the government for sharing just such anti-semitic sentiments in public.
Politicians Only Love Journalists When They're Dead|Luke O’Neil|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Not actual CIA agents, but U.S. government personnel who have worked very closely with the CIA, and who are fans of the show.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I think the response of the French government so far has been pretty appropriate in that regard.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The United States government might not release that information for years, if ever.
Was Sony Hit With a Second Hack?|Shane Harris|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But most likely it was linked to the way priests identify with the poor in the face of government and criminal abuses.
Mexico’s Priests Are Marked for Murder|Jason McGahan|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Dockier, a prominent leader of the Levelers, in the times of the English commonwealth, was shot by order of the government.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
The patriarchal decree of the government was a good deal of a joke on the plains, anyway—except when you were caught defying it!
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
History gives them scant notice, and the Federal government has failed to reward them as they deserve.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn
A royal decree (December 31, 1622) orders the Dominicans in the Philippines not to meddle in affairs of government.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XX, 1621-1624|Various
For the first time in his experience the Corsican had to meet the forces of a nation and not of a government.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison

British Dictionary definitions for government

government

/ (ˈɡʌvənmənt, ˈɡʌvəmənt) /

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 ruledtyrannical government

the executive policy-making body of a political unit, community, etc; ministry or administrationyesterday we got a new government
(capital when of a specific country)the British Government

the state and its administrationblame it on the government
(as modifier)a government agency

regulation; direction

grammar the determination of the form of one word by another word

Derived forms of government

governmental (ˌɡʌvənˈmɛntəl, ˌɡʌvəˈmɛntəl), adjectivegovernmentally, adverb

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

government

Origin of government

grammar notes for government

how to pronounce government

OTHER WORDS FROM government

Words nearby government

Words related to government

How to use government in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for government

Derived forms of government