republic

noun

re·pub·lic | \ ri-ˈpə-blik

Definition of republic

1a(1) : a government having a chief of state who is not a monarch and who in modern times is usually a president

(2) : a political unit (such as a nation) having such a form of government

b(1) : a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law

(2) : a political unit (such as a nation) having such a form of government

c : a usually specified republican government of a political unit the French Fourth Republic

2 : a body of persons freely engaged in a specified activity the republic of letters

3 : a constituent political and territorial unit of the former nations of Czechoslovakia, the U.S.S.R., or Yugoslavia

Synonyms Is the United States a democracy or a republic? More Example Sentences Learn More about republic

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Is the United States a democracy or a republic?

One of the most commonly encountered questions about the word democracy has nothing to do with its spelling or pronunciation, and isn’t even directly related to the meaning of the word itself. That question is “is the United States a democracy or a republic?” The answer to this, as with so many other questions about meaning, may be phrased as some form of “it depends.”

Some people believe that a country calling itself a democracy must be engaged in direct (or pure) democracy, in which the people of a state or region vote directly for policies, rather than elect representatives who make choices on their behalf. People who follow this line of reasoning hold that the United States is more properly described as a republic, using the following definition of that word: ”a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law.”

However, both democracy and republic have more than a single meaning, and one of the definitions we provide for democracy closely resembles the definition of republic given above: “a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.”

So if someone asks you if the United States is a democracy or a republic, you may safely answer the question with either “both” or “it depends.”

Examples of republic in a Sentence

when asked by a passerby what sort of government the constitutional convention had formulated for the new nation, Benjamin Franklin memorably replied, “A republic, if you can keep it”

Recent Examples on the Web

And some amazing performances were happening, such as those led by Aleksandra Kollontai in Muslim republics of the USSR, where women would gather in the main squares of cities and get rid of their burkas in front of everybody. — Corey Seymour, Vogue, "Pussy Riot's Nadya Tolokonnikova On Her New Guide To Activism, Raising The Next President Of Russia, And Her "Holy War" On Fairy Tales," 12 Oct. 2018 The official said the suspect was born in November 1997 in the largely Muslim Russian republic of Chechnya, where extremism has long simmered. — Angela Charlton And Elaine Ganley, chicagotribune.com, "Parents, friend of Chechnya-born Paris attacker questioned," 13 May 2018 But Ataturk’s legacy as a statesman who transformed a majority Muslim nation into a secular republic has been largely erased from the public debate. — David Gauthier-villars, WSJ, "A Craze for Atatürk Gives New Cachet to Turkey’s Founding Father," 22 Feb. 2019 Will the monarchy of Genovia transition to a republic? — Vogue, "Anne Hathaway Confirms The Princess Diaries 3 Is in the Works—With Someone Very Important on Board," 25 Jan. 2019 The Central Asian country was then a Soviet republic. — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, "Kazakhstan chooses SpaceX over a Russian rocket for satellite launch," 6 Nov. 2018 But while the majority of politicians and even a former Governor-General support a republic today with an Australian as head of state, the people don’t necessarily agree. — Juliet Rieden, Town & Country, "Why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Tour of Australia Is Crucial to the Future of the Monarchy," 1 Nov. 2018 That is the beauty of America and our being a republic. — Paul Gattis, AL.com, "Mo Brooks: Doug Jones election to Senate 'major loss' for country," 12 Mar. 2018 The dissolution occurred in a time of ethnic and political troubles, economic woes and a series of revolutions that led Soviet republics to seek their independence. — Hope Yen, The Seattle Times, "AP FACT CHECK: Trump claims innocence in probe; wall myths," 7 Jan. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'republic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

9 Apr 2019

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Time Traveler for republic

The first known use of republic was in 1596

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More Definitions for republic

republic

noun

English Language Learners Definition of republic

: a country that is governed by elected representatives and by an elected leader (such as a president) rather than by a king or queen

See the full definition for republic in the English Language Learners Dictionary

republic

noun

re·pub·lic | \ ri-ˈpə-blik

Kids Definition of republic

: a country with elected representatives and an elected chief of state who is not a monarch and who is usually a president

republic

noun

re·pub·lic

Legal Definition of republic

1 : a government having a chief of state who is not a monarch and who in modern times is usually a president also : a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government

2 : a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law also : a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government