Louis XIV

American  

noun

1. the Greatthe Sun King, 1638–1715, king of France 1643–1715 (son of Louis XIII).

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Louis XIV British  

noun

1. known as le roi soleil (the Sun King). 1638–1715, king of France (1643–1715); son of Louis XIII and Anne of Austria. Effective ruler from 1661, he established an absolute monarchy. His attempt to establish French supremacy in Europe, waging almost continual wars from 1667 to 1714, ultimately failed. But his reign is regarded as a golden age of French literature and art

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Louis XIV Cultural  

1. A king of France in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Louis was known as the Sun King for his power and splendor. By inviting French nobles to live in luxury at his palace at Versailles, he removed them as threats and greatly increased his own power. He is known for saying, “L'état, c'est moi” (“I am the state”).

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Example Sentences

Under his leadership, the palace, which was built by Louis XIV in the 17th century, hosted competitions for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026

Louis XIV, Napoleon, imperial Germany, Hitler, Tojo and Stalin all had some good years.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 26, 2026

Saint-Simon knew that when kings embrace their own flattery, they open themselves to manipulation, and the writer viewed Louis XIV as an illusory absolutist who was in fact controlled by fawning scoundrels.

From Slate • May 30, 2025

"He's just like Louis XIV," one retired American diplomat said to me, referring to France's self-aggrandising Sun King.

From BBC • Feb. 23, 2025

In 1656 Louis XIV expanded the violin band further and renamed it La grande bande.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall