hold sway over

1. Dominate, have a controlling influence over, as in He held sway over the entire department. This idiom uses the noun sway in the sense of “power” or “dominion,” a usage dating from the late 1500s.

Example Sentences

The son of Sicilian immigrants, Nania is alleged to be an associate of the Mexican Mafia, an organization of about 140 men who hold sway over Latino gang members behind prison walls and in the streets of Southern California.

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Professor Boedy said McCoy turned Kirk toward Christian nationalism, specifically the Seven Mountains Mandate — the idea that Christians should try to hold sway over the seven pillars of cultural influence: arts and entertainment, business, education, family, government, media and religion.

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Department of Justice have argued that the measure “stops federal subsidies for Big Abortion,” that Congress under the constitution is “free to decline to provide taxpayer funds to entities that provide abortions,” and that Planned Parenthood’s position should not hold sway over that of Congress.

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Fr Francesco Tedeschi, the man campaigning for Kositi to become a Catholic saint, told the BBC his "mafia-style" murder was meant to serve as a warning to anyone else who stood up to corruption - in a part of the world where guns tend to hold sway over the rule of law.

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One local leader had managed to stay in hiding and still hold sway over organised crime in his local district, police explained.

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Related Words

• administer 
• command 
• conduct 
• deal with 
• dominate 
• govern 
• handle 
• lead 
• manage 
• manipulate 
• oversee 
• regulate 
• rule 
• run 
• supervise