govern
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Related to govern: government officials
gov·ern
(gŭv′ərn)v. gov·erned, gov·ern·ing, gov·erns
v.tr.
1. To make and administer the public policy and affairs of (a state, for example); exercise sovereign authority over.
2. To control the speed or magnitude of; regulate: a valve that governs fuel intake.
3. To control the actions or behavior of: Govern yourselves like civilized people.
4. To keep under control; restrain: a student who could not govern his impulses.
5. To exercise a deciding or determining influence on: Chance usually governs the outcome of the game.
6. Grammar To require (a specific morphological form) of accompanying words.
v.intr.
1. To exercise political authority.
2. To have or exercise a determining influence.
[Middle English governen, from Old French governer, from Latin gubernāre, from Greek kubernān.]
gov′ern·a·ble adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
govern
(ˈɡʌvən)vb (mainly tr)
1. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) (also intr) to direct and control the actions, affairs, policies, functions, etc, of (a political unit, organization, nation, etc); rule
2. to exercise restraint over; regulate or direct: to govern one's temper.
3. to be a predominant influence on (something); decide or determine (something): his injury governed his decision to avoid sports.
4. (Automotive Engineering) to control the speed of (an engine, machine, etc) using a governor
5. (Automotive Engineering) to control the rate of flow of (a fluid) by using an automatic valve
6. (Linguistics) (of a word) to determine the inflection of (another word): Latin nouns govern adjectives that modify them.
[C13: from Old French gouverner, from Latin gubernāre to steer, from Greek kubernan]
ˈgovernable adj
ˌgovernaˈbility, ˈgovernableness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
gov•ern
(ˈgʌv ərn)v.t.
1. to rule by right of authority, as a sovereign does: to govern a nation.
2. to exercise a directing or restraining influence over; guide: the motives governing a decision.
3. to hold in check; control: to govern one's temper.
4. to serve as or constitute a law for: the principles governing a case.
5. (of a word or class of words) to require the use of a particular form of (another word or class).
6. to regulate the speed of (an engine) with a governor.
v.i. 7. to exercise the function of government.
8. to have predominating influence.
[1250–1300; Middle English < Old French gouverner < Latin gubernāre to steer (a ship) < Greek kybernân to steer]
gov′ern•a•ble, adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
govern
- From Greek kubernan, "to steer."See also related terms for steer.
Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.
govern
Past participle: governed
Gerund: governing
| Imperative |
|---|
| govern |
| govern |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. | govern - bring into conformity with rules or principles or usage; impose regulations; "We cannot regulate the way people dress"; "This town likes to regulate" standardize, standardise - cause to conform to standard or norm; "The weights and measures were standardized" decide, make up one's mind, determine - reach, make, or come to a decision about something; "We finally decided after lengthy deliberations" |
| 2. | govern - direct or strongly influence the behavior of; "His belief in God governs his conduct" | |
| 3. | govern - exercise authority over; as of nations; "Who is governing the country now?" control, command - exercise authoritative control or power over; "control the budget"; "Command the military forces" throne - sit on the throne as a ruler misgovern - govern badly dictate - rule as a dictator reign - have sovereign power; "Henry VIII reigned for a long time" | |
| 4. | govern - require to be in a certain grammatical case, voice, or mood; "most transitive verbs govern the accusative case in German" necessitate, need, require, call for, demand, postulate, involve, ask, take - require as useful, just, or proper; "It takes nerve to do what she did"; "success usually requires hard work"; "This job asks a lot of patience and skill"; "This position demands a lot of personal sacrifice"; "This dinner calls for a spectacular dessert"; "This intervention does not postulate a patient's consent" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
govern
verb
1. rule, lead, control, command, manage, direct, guide, handle, conduct, order, reign over, administer, oversee, supervise, be in power over, call the shots, call the tune, hold sway over, superintend They go to the polls on Friday to choose the people they want to govern their country.
2. determine, decide, guide, rule, influence, underlie, sway Marine insurance is governed by a strict series of rules and regulations.
3. restrain, control, check, contain, master, discipline, regulate, curb, inhibit, tame, subdue, get the better of, bridle, hold in check, keep a tight rein on Try to govern your temper.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
govern
verb1. To have charge of (the affairs of others):
4. To exercise authority or influence over:
Idioms: be at the helm, be in the driver's seat, hold sway over, hold the reins.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يُأثِّر تأثيرا شديدايَحْكُم
ovládatvládnoutřídit
bestemmeregerestyrebetingetlede
hallitamäärätäsäätää
ákvarîa , stjórnast, hafa áhrif ástjórna
ietekmētnoteiktpārvaldītvadītvaldīt
vladati
idare etmekyönetmekyönlendirmek
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
govern
vt
(= control: rules, laws etc) → bestimmen; (legislation) → regeln; (= determine, influence) choice, decision → bestimmen, beeinflussen; development, person, actions → beeinflussen; life → beherrschen; regulations governing the sale of spirits → Bestimmungen über den Verkauf von Spirituosen; strict rules governing how much they can earn → strenge Vorschriften darüber, wie viel sie verdienen dürfen; to be governed by somebody’s wishes → sich nach jds Wünschen richten
(= hold in check) passions etc → beherrschen; (Mech) speed, engine → regulieren; to govern one’s temper → sich beherrschen
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
govern
[ˈgʌv/ən] vt (rule, country) → governare; (subj, king) → regnare (in); (control, business) → dirigere; (city) → amministrare; (choice, decision) → regolare; (person) → guidare; (emotions) → dominare (Gram) → reggereCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
govern
(ˈgavən) verb1. to rule. The queen governed (the country) wisely and well.
2. to influence. Our policy is governed by three factors.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.