sovereignty
noun
sov·er·eign·ty
ˈsä-v(ə-)rən-tē 
-vərn-tē
also ˈsə-
variants
or less commonly sovranty
plural sovereignties also sovranties
1
a
: supreme power especially over a body politic
b
: freedom from external control : autonomy sense 1
c
: controlling influence
2
: one that is sovereign
especially
: an autonomous state : autonomy sense 2
3
obsolete
: supreme excellence or an example of it
Examples of sovereignty in a Sentence
Nor was the sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian race recognized at the time Hawaii became a state.
—
Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review, 18 July 2005
Cesaire's wrenching chant of self-affirmation announced a new era of intellectual and cultural sovereignty for black writers in French.
—Lila Azam Zanganeh, New York Times Book Review, 12 June 2005
The position plunged him into a supremely complicated religious and political game. Throughout Europe the old order of divinely sanctioned kingdoms was battling models of popular sovereignty and citizenship inspired by the Enlightenment, the French Revolution and the adolescent U.S.
—David Van Biema, Time, 4 Sept. 2000
upon leaving home she felt that she had achieved sovereignty for the first time in her life
as parts of the same sovereignty, the states should not enact laws intended to harm one another economically
Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review, 18 July 2005
Cesaire's wrenching chant of self-affirmation announced a new era of intellectual and cultural sovereignty for black writers in French.
—Lila Azam Zanganeh, New York Times Book Review, 12 June 2005
The position plunged him into a supremely complicated religious and political game. Throughout Europe the old order of divinely sanctioned kingdoms was battling models of popular sovereignty and citizenship inspired by the Enlightenment, the French Revolution and the adolescent U.S.
—David Van Biema, Time, 4 Sept. 2000
upon leaving home she felt that she had achieved sovereignty for the first time in her life
as parts of the same sovereignty, the states should not enact laws intended to harm one another economically
Recent Examples on the Web
East African governing body IGAD, in a statement on Saturday, said Somalia's sovereignty was recognized under international law.
—CBS News, 27 Dec. 2025
For more than a century, Thailand and Cambodia have contested sovereignty at various undemarcated points along their 817-kilometer (508-mile) land border – a dispute that has occasionally exploded into skirmishes and fighting.
—CNN Money, 27 Dec. 2025
The authors also note that rethinking sea ice’s status could include Indigenous people who have been routinely excluded from decisions around Arctic sovereignty and whose millennia of living on and with ice could guide its future governance.
—Brett Simpson, The Atlantic, 26 Dec. 2025
Turkish pro-government media celebrated it as an assertion of sovereignty, proof that Ankara would not be dictated to by Washington.
—Bobby Ghosh, Time, 22 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sovereignty
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CBS News, 27 Dec. 2025
For more than a century, Thailand and Cambodia have contested sovereignty at various undemarcated points along their 817-kilometer (508-mile) land border – a dispute that has occasionally exploded into skirmishes and fighting.
—CNN Money, 27 Dec. 2025
The authors also note that rethinking sea ice’s status could include Indigenous people who have been routinely excluded from decisions around Arctic sovereignty and whose millennia of living on and with ice could guide its future governance.
—Brett Simpson, The Atlantic, 26 Dec. 2025
Turkish pro-government media celebrated it as an assertion of sovereignty, proof that Ankara would not be dictated to by Washington.
—Bobby Ghosh, Time, 22 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sovereignty
Cite this Entry
“Sovereignty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sovereignty. Accessed 29 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sovereignty
noun
sov·er·eign·ty
ˈsäv-(ə-)rən-tē
ˈsäv-ərn-,
ˈsəv-
plural sovereignties
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