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

Sununus are one of New Hampshire’s royal families, and John’s brother, Chris, is a popular former governor.

From Slate ● Sep. 19, 2026

A spokesperson for Abbott said the governor is planning to run a competitive race, as usual, against Hinojosa.

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026

State governor Mohammed Umaru Bago called the deaths "sad and tragic" during a press conference on Thursday.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

“Policy is currently only slightly restricting aggregate demand, and it may not take much acceleration in inflation to nudge me into supporting tighter policy,” Fed governor Christopher Waller said on Sept. 3.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

When Washington told Gist what the governor wanted, Gist agreed to guide Washington.

From "George Washington, Spymaster" by Thomas B. Allen

Though he is no longer the Fed’s top regulator, he remains on the seven-member board of governors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Powell remains on the central bank’s board of governors.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026

"That works beautifully as long as everyone agrees the accelerator stays pinned to the floor. It becomes more complicated when the top dogs running the biggest AI engines start discussing speed governors."

From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026

Newsom and other governors have repeatedly denied parole to his closest acolytes, though an appeals court overturned Newsom’s veto of the release of Leslie Van Houten in 2023.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

“Me, I want as many governors as possible to come to my own wedding o. It shows levels, serious levels,” Ranyinudo said.

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie