imperium
Americannoun
plural
imperia, imperiums-
command; supreme power.
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area of dominion; sphere of control or monopoly; empire.
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a nation having or exerting supreme power; superpower.
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Law. the right to command the force of the state in order to enforce the law.
noun
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(in ancient Rome) the supreme power, held esp by consuls and emperors, to command and administer in military, judicial, and civil affairs
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the right to command; supreme power
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a less common word for empire
Etymology
Origin of imperium
1645–55; < Latin: supreme administrative power, authority, empire, equivalent to imper ( āre ) to rule ( imperative ) + -ium -ium
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.
Provincial governors had imperium, or jurisdiction over a territory or military legion.
From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023
In Poland — a nation held captive in the totalitarian Soviet imperium for decades before leading the struggle to break those chains and rejoin Europe — ideas of heroism and sacrifice endured.
From New York Times • Feb. 26, 2023
If nations are to save us from the imperium, one would expect them to operate differently from the nations of today.
From Washington Post • Jun. 17, 2022
Born into the stifling oppression of the Soviet imperium, Christo — whose full name was Christo Vladimirov Javacheff — always had one core guiding idea: the inalienability of freedom.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 17, 2021
Dictatorially extending Andean verticality, the imperium shuttled people and materiel in and out of every Andean crevice.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
