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governor general

American  
Or governor-general

noun

  • governors general,
    plural
  • governor generals
    plural
  1. a governor who is chief over subordinate or deputy governors.

  2. governor.


governor general British  

noun

  1. the representative of the Crown in a dominion of the Commonwealth or a British colony; vicegerent

  2. a governor with jurisdiction or precedence over other governors

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns


Etymology

Origin of governor general

First recorded in 1580–90


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.

See Examples For:

In a speech, Dame Cynthia A Pratt, the governor general of the Bahamas who is the King's representative on the island, described her pride at Charles visiting the country for the first time since 1973.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

He is represented in Ottawa by a governor general and in the provinces by lieutenant governors.

From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026

Cicero’s rhetoric would be echoed centuries later by Edmund Burke, who invoked Verres in his denunciation of Warren Hastings, the British governor general of India who was impeached for corruption in 1787.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2025

Next, David Johnston, the former governor general, looked at the body of evidence that produced the leak.

From New York Times ● Jun. 1, 2024

In a proclamation, the British governor general of Virginia, John Murray, Earl of Dunmore, announced that slaves or indentured servants who left their owners to fight with the British would be freed.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

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