governor

noun

gov·​er·​nor ˈgə-vᵊn-ər 

 also  ˈgə-vər-nər

1

: one that governs: such as

a

: one that exercises authority especially over an area or group

b

: an official elected or appointed to act as ruler, chief executive, or nominal head of a political unit

c

: commanding officer

d

: the managing director and usually the principal officer of an institution or organization

e

: a member of a group that directs or controls an institution or society

2

: tutor

3

a

slang : one looked upon as governing

b

: mister, sir

—usually used as a term of address

4

a

: an attachment to a machine (such as a gasoline engine) for automatic control or limitation of speed

b

: a device giving automatic control (as of pressure or temperature)

governorate

ˈgə-vᵊn-ər-ət 

-ˌāt

 also  ˈgə-vər-nər-

noun

Examples of governor in a Sentence

the governor of the state of Florida

He was the chairman of the board of governors at the school.

the governor of the Bank of England

Wait here while I get the governor.

Recent Examples on the Web

The governor’s office declined to comment on the smaller but still substantial cuts that the agency ultimately approved, outside of brief positive reference in a news release. —Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 16 Nov. 2023

Taking a lesson from Mr. Bush, Mr. Obama recast his campaign away from his first-term record and set out to discredit his opponent, Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, as a wealthy businessman unsympathetic to working-class Americans. —Adam Nagourney, New York Times, 16 Nov. 2023

But someone else is even more upset, namely the serial killer — wearing a mask featuring the bearded face of John Carver, the Pilgrim who became the first governor of Plymouth Colony — who begins dispatching people who were at the store on that fateful night. —Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Nov. 2023

One account from a person present at the event is from a letter by Edward Winslow, one of the founders and governor of the Plymouth colony. —Elizabeth Gamillo, Discover Magazine, 15 Nov. 2023

With Senator Tim Scott (R., S.C.) out of the 2024 presidential race, voters can expect the battle between Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley to heat up, strategists say, with the former South Carolina governor well positioned to win over Scott’s supporters. —Brittany Bernstein, National Review, 15 Nov. 2023

While the Democratic Party’s prominent governors and senators have still not chosen to challenge Mr. Biden, the White House may already understand that the relatively obscure man from the Land of 10,000 Lakes could be a formidable opponent. —James Freeman, WSJ, 14 Nov. 2023

And on October 8 of this year, California’s governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill updating the state’s Health and Safety Code to ban cosmetic products that contain ingredients including formaldehyde, methylene glycol and a range of parabens and phthalates. —Syris Valentine, Scientific American, 14 Nov. 2023

In Morning Consult's approval polling for the third quarter of 2023, Reeves ranked as the second least-popular governor in the nation. —Geoffrey Skelley, ABC News, 6 Nov. 2023

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Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing governor

• lieutenant governor
• governor-general

• lieutenant governor
• governor-general

Kids Definition

governor

noun

gov·​er·​nor ˈgəv(-ə)-nər 

 also  ˈgəv-ər-nər

1

: one that governs

especially : an official elected or appointed to act as ruler, chief executive, or head of a political unit (as a colony, state, or province)

2

: an attachment to a machine for automatic control of speed

governorship

-ˌship

noun

Legal Definition

governor

noun

gov·​er·​nor ˈgə-vər-nər 

: one that governs: as

a

: one that exercises authority especially over an area or group

b

: an official elected or appointed to act as ruler, chief executive, or nominal head of a political unit

specifically : the chief executive of a U.S. state

c

: the managing director and usually the principal officer of an institution or organization

d

: a member of a group that controls or directs an institution

the Federal Reserve System's Board of Governors

governorship noun