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

c

: controlling influence

2

: one that is sovereign

especially : an autonomous state

3

obsolete : supreme excellence or an example of it

Synonyms

• independence
• freedom
• independency
• liberty

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

Recent Examples on the Web

One columnist with the New Pittsburgh Courier even slapped Whyte’s label on the United Nations, suggesting that countries, like individuals, had a primal aversion to yielding their sovereignty to the groupthink of world governance. —David Merritt Johns, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025

Such fallacies are utterly unacceptable anywhere…The Chinese military will continue to take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security, and firmly uphold regional peace and stability. —Ryan Chan, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025

And importantly, Timor-Leste’s ASEAN membership is an affirmation of its sovereignty, putting it in equal standing with its former occupier, Indonesia, within the regional bloc. —Angelica Ang, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2025

Their vision of Canadian sovereignty, linked to the preservation of social democracy and protected from American influence, was simply no longer relevant. —Dónal Gill, The Dial, 28 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English soverainte, from Anglo-French sovereinté, from soverein — see sovereign entry 2

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing sovereignty

• popular sovereignty
• squatter sovereignty

Kids Definition

sovereignty

noun

sov·​er·​eign·​ty ˈsäv-(ə-)rən-tē 

ˈsäv-ərn-,

ˈsəv-

plural sovereignties

1

a

: supreme power especially over a politically organized unit : dominion

b

: freedom from outside control : autonomy

c

: the condition of being sovereign or a sovereign

2

: one (as a country) that is sovereign

Legal Definition

sovereignty

noun

sov·​er·​eign·​ty

ˈsä-vrən-tē, ˈsə-, -və-rən-

plural sovereignties

1

a

: supreme power especially over a body politic

b

: freedom from external control : autonomy

2

: one that is sovereign

especially : an autonomous state