kingdom
Americannoun
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kingdoms
plural
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a state or government having a king or queen as its head.
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anything conceived as constituting a realm or sphere of independent action or control.
the kingdom of thought.
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a realm or province of nature, especially one of the three broad divisions of natural objects.
the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms.
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Biology. a taxonomic category of the second highest rank, just below domain: in a traditional five-kingdom classification scheme, separate kingdoms are assigned to animals (Animalia), plants (Plantae), fungi (Fungi), protozoa and eukaryotic algae (Protista), and bacteria (Monera).
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the spiritual sovereignty of God or Christ.
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the domain over which the spiritual sovereignty of God or Christ extends, whether in heaven or on earth.
noun
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a territory, state, people, or community ruled or reigned over by a king or queen
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any of the three groups into which natural objects may be divided: the animal, plant, and mineral kingdoms
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biology any of the major categories into which living organisms of the domain Eukarya are classified. Modern systems recognize four kingdoms: Protoctista (algae, protozoans, etc), Fungi , Plantae , and Animalia See also domain
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theol the eternal sovereignty of God
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an area of activity, esp mental activity, considered as being the province of something specified
the kingdom of the mind
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The highest classification into which living organisms are grouped in Linnean taxonomy, ranking above a phylum. One widely accepted system of classification divides life into five kingdoms: prokaryotes, protists, fungi, plants, and animals.
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See Table at taxonomy
Synonym Usage
Kingdom, monarchy, realm refer to the state or domain ruled by a king or queen. A kingdom is a governmental unit ruled by a king or queen: the kingdom of Norway. A monarchy is primarily a form of government in which a single person is sovereign; it is also the type of power exercised by the monarch: This kingdom is not an absolute monarchy. A realm is the domain, including the subjects, over which the king has jurisdiction; figuratively, a sphere of power or influence: the laws of the realm.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of kingdom
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English cyningdōm; see origin at king, -dom
Explanation
A kingdom is a territory or group of people ruled by the same monarch. You probably know the story of the prince who searched the kingdom to find the girl who left her glass slipper at the ball. A kingdom is a place — either literal or imagined — where someone or something reigns. A queen rules over her kingdom, which is land and the people who live on it, while a certain pop singer has a kingdom of young fans. In "the kingdom of the mind," creativity and imagination — not kings or queens — rule. In biology, a kingdom is a grouping of like organisms. For example, a dog is a member of the animal kingdom.
Vocabulary lists containing kingdom
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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:
The researchers named the species Dianjunus rex, drawing inspiration from its impressive size and the ancient Dian kingdom.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 26, 2026
The kingdom offered financial support to cover government employees’ salaries in San’a during several years of relative quiet, but fighting resumed this summer and quickly escalated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
The mysterious effects of L. asiatica illustrate just how much remains to be learned about the fungal kingdom.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026
The Houthis said they were retaliating for what they have called a Saudi blockade of their territory, as well as an air strike on Sanaa airport that they blamed on the kingdom.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
She could almost imagine that she was at a royal ball in a beautiful castle in some faraway kingdom.
From "The Cinderella Ballet Mystery: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #4" by Carolyn Keene
The country is home to four main kingdoms, the largest and most prominent being Buganda in the central region, which encompasses the capital Kampala.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
The story is that in this period Scandinavia became distinct unified Christian kingdoms from a series of disparate and decentralized pagan tribes.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026
Uganda abolished its traditional kingdoms in 1967, but they were restored in the 1990s under President Museveni.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
To reach the common ancestor shared by the plant and animal kingdoms, Anderson says researchers must look back to around 1.6 billion years ago.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
In the meantime, the Tizerkane would continue their travels, searching out more delegates in the kingdoms of Syriza, Thanagost, and Maialen.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
