regime

American  

[ruh-zheem, ray-, -jeem] / rəˈʒim, reɪ-, -ˈdʒim /

Or régime

noun

• regimes
  plural

1. a mode or system of rule or government.

   a dictatorial regime.

2. a ruling or prevailing system.

3. a government in power.

4. the period during which a particular government or ruling system is in power.

5. Medicine/Medical. regimen.

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regime British  

/ reɪˈʒiːm /

noun

1. a system of government or a particular administration

   a fascist regime

   the regime of Fidel Castro

2. a social system or order

3. med another word for regimen

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regime Cultural  

1. An administration, or a system of managing government.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• regimes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of regime

First recorded in 1770–80; from French régime, from Latin regimen regimen

Explanation

A regime is the ruling government of a country. The amount of freedom and restriction that citizens of a country have can change from regime to regime. Regime takes its militaristic and government feel from the Latin word regimen "to rule." A political regime has a negative association to it that makes you think of totalitarian governments. How did it come to mean "diet" or "program of exercise" as well? If you are put on a regime of exercise and healthy eating, you are ordered by a doctor to do these things and it probably feels like you're being ruled sometimes!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

regime regimes

But Yap Lay Sheng, a senior human rights specialist with Fortify Rights, told AFP: "There's no telling how the regime would treat returnees."

From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026

Beyond the corporate debt world, borrowers with older commercial real-estate loans have been struggling to keep up in the higher-rate regime.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 3, 2026

This newly accessible regime of ultra-high current superconductivity could also have implications for optoelectronics and potentially for magnetic devices.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

Under him, Malaysia has refused to recognise Min Aung Hlaing's regime, and has been one of the strongest voices in South East Asia pushing for a negotiated end to Myanmar's civil war.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

After the German surrender, he brought one more argument to the table: using the bomb on Japan would fatally compromise America’s moral and humanitarian standing, undermining any efforts to create a workable international control regime.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

"The next step is to point this at systems where nobody knows the response of the system quantitatively -- including regimes that classical computers can't reach."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 1, 2026

“I think their entire approach is about this openness and also a real, critical look at authoritarian regimes of the past and this whole era.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

Afghani activist Roya Mahboob stressed that women who live under oppressive regimes like the Taliban can secure financial independence only with tools, like Bitcoin, that circumvent the law.

From Slate ● Sep. 20, 2026

Industry executives and advisers say the tax reversals could push future data center projects to states that retain favorable tax regimes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Within two years, there was no Soviet Empire to hide behind anymore or to prop up autocratic regimes in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, or Latin America.

From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman

Related Words

• administration
• establishment
• government
• management
• reign
• rule
• system