reign

American  

[reyn] / reɪn /

noun

1. the period during which a sovereign occupies the throne.

2. royal rule or authority; sovereignty.

   Synonyms:

   suzerainty, dominion

3. dominating power or influence.

   the reign of law.

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verb (used without object)

1. to possess or exercise sovereign power or authority.

   Synonyms:

   prevail, govern, rule

   Antonyms:

   obey

2. to hold the position and name of sovereign without exercising the ruling power.

3. to have control, rule, or influence of any kind.

4. to predominate; be prevalent.

reign British  

/ reɪn /

noun

1. the period during which a monarch is the official ruler of a country

2. a period during which a person or thing is dominant, influential, or powerful

   the reign of violence is over

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verb

1. to exercise the power and authority of a sovereign

2. to be accorded the rank and title of a sovereign without having ruling authority, as in a constitutional monarchy

3. to predominate; prevail

   a land where darkness reigns

4. (usually present participle) to be the most recent winner of a competition, contest, etc

   the reigning heavyweight champion

Usage

Reign is sometimes wrongly written for rein in certain phrases: he gave full rein (not reign ) to his feelings; it will be necessary to rein in (not reign in ) public spending

Other Word Forms

• interreign verb (used without object)
• nonreigning adjective
• outreign verb (used with object)
• unreigning adjective

Etymology

Origin of reign

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English noun reine, regne, from Old French reigne, from Latin regnum “realm, reign,” derivative of reg- (stem of rēx ) “king”; Middle English verb reinen, regnen, from Old French reignier, from Latin regnāre, derivative of regnum

Example Sentences

Any immediate military operation will be undertaken when a lot of chaos reigns on the ground.

From The Wall Street Journal

Xabi Alonso's reign as Real Madrid coach lasted less than eight months as the Spaniard agreed a deal to depart from the Spanish giants on Monday.

From Barron's

That kept alive Josh Allen's hopes of reaching his first Super Bowl, with the NFL's reigning Most Valuable Player having put the Bills back in front with one minute four seconds remaining.

From BBC

Between the 16 athletes representing the team in Milan, there are three reigning world champions.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s to his credit that in this book he faces head-on the controversies surrounding Marcus’ reign.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• dominate
• govern
• hold sway
• occupy
• predominate