imperium

American  

[im-peer-ee-uhm] / ɪmˈpɪər i əm /

noun

plural

imperia, imperiums

1. command; supreme power.

2. area of dominion; sphere of control or monopoly; empire.

3. a nation having or exerting supreme power; superpower.

4. Law. the right to command the force of the state in order to enforce the law.

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imperium British  

/ ɪmˈpɪərɪəm /

noun

1. (in ancient Rome) the supreme power, held esp by consuls and emperors, to command and administer in military, judicial, and civil affairs

2. the right to command; supreme power

3. a less common word for empire

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Etymology

Origin of imperium

1645–55; < Latin: supreme administrative power, authority, empire, equivalent to imper ( āre ) to rule ( imperative ) + -ium -ium

Example Sentences

To challenge that French postcolonial imperium built by cunning, corruption and covert skullduggery, Moscow needed an operative who could match Jacques Foccart’s legendary mastery of the dirty business of empire, measure for measure.

From Salon • Oct. 22, 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

Or at least that’s how I suspect it will be seen in the cold light of hindsight, when some future Edward Gibbon sets out to tell the story of the American imperium in full.

From New York Times • Sep. 4, 2021

Dictatorially extending Andean verticality, the imperium shuttled people and materiel in and out of every Andean crevice.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Related Words

• authority
• clout
• influence
• jurisdiction
• law
• leadership
• management
• prestige
• privilege
• right
• rule
• sovereignty
• strength
• weight