govern

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Pronunciation

• (GA) IPA: /ˈɡʌvɚn/
• (RP) IPA: /ˈɡʌvən/

Verb

govern (governs, present participle governing; past and past participle governed)

1. (transitive) To make and administer the public policy and affairs of; to exercise sovereign authority in.

   The old king governed the land wisely.

2. (transitive) To control the actions or behavior of; to keep under control; to restrain.

   Govern yourselves like civilized people.

   a student who could not govern his impulses

   • Find the strength, courage, and discipline to govern yourself or be governed by someone else.

3. (transitive) To exercise a deciding or determining influence on.

   Chance governs the outcome of many card games.

4. (transitive) To control the speed, flow etc. of; to regulate.

   a valve that governs fuel intake

5. (intransitive) To exercise political authority; to run a government.
6. (intransitive) To have or exercise a determining influence.
7. (transitive, grammar) To require that a certain preposition, grammatical case, etc. be used with a word; sometimes used synonymously with collocate.

Related terms

• government
• governance
• governor
• governess

Translations

• French: gouverner
• German: regieren
• Portuguese: governar
• Russian: пра́вить
• Spanish: gobernar

Translations

• German: regulieren
• Russian: управля́ть

Translations

• German: lenken
• Russian: влия́ть

Translations

• German: regeln
• Russian: регули́ровать

Translations

• German: regieren
• Russian: управля́ть
• Spanish: gobernar

Translations

• German: regeln
• Russian: влия́ть

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