govern

noun

The act of governing

verb

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

(intransitive) To exercise political authority; to run a government.

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

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

(intransitive) To have or exercise a determining influence.

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

(transitive, grammar) To require that a certain preposition, grammatical case, etc. be used with a word.

(transitive, obsolete) To handle, to manage, to oversee (a matter, an affair, a household, etc.).

(transitive, obsolete) To direct the course of, to guide in some direction, to steer.

(transitive, obsolete) To look after, to take care of, to tend to (someone or some plant).

(transitive, obsolete) To manage, to control, to work (a tool or mechanical device).

Roots

gubernaregovern- · Latin · steer, govern

Synonyms for govern

regulatev rulen controln dominatev administerv reignn administratev overseev managev superintendv

Synonyms & related words for govern

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of govern — including regulate, rule, control, dominate, administer, reign. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to govern

Explore words related to govern — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include misgoverning, misgoverned, governable, governance, dictate, regulable, regularize, enforce. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for govern

Common synonyms for govern include regulate, rule, control, dominate, administer, reign, administrate, oversee — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does govern come from?

The word govern breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root govern-, from Latin gubernare (“steer, govern”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.