1
as in to rule
to exercise authority or power over
the president is elected in order to govern the country, not to follow public opinion polls
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to regulate
to keep from exceeding a desirable degree or level (as of expression)
you need to govern your speech and be able to communicate your outrage without resorting to profanity
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to manage
to look after and make decisions about
the company's finances are governed by its chief financial officer
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of govern
The Fed is governed by its seven-member board.
—
Steve Liesman,matt Peterson, CNBC, 27 Mar. 2026
One of the two women's boxing gold medalists at the center of the gender controversy in Paris, Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, has passed her gene test and can return to competition, the World Boxing governing body said last week.
—CBS News, 26 Mar. 2026
Wood is an Australian writer especially interested in the way civilizational constraints affect people—and what happens when the invisible rules governing daily life are rearranged.
—Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 26 Mar. 2026
Within 48 hours, the legal landscape governing social media and children shifted in ways that will take years to fully understand and verify.
—Carolina Rossini, The Conversation, 26 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for govern
Steve Liesman,matt Peterson, CNBC, 27 Mar. 2026
One of the two women's boxing gold medalists at the center of the gender controversy in Paris, Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, has passed her gene test and can return to competition, the World Boxing governing body said last week.
—CBS News, 26 Mar. 2026
Wood is an Australian writer especially interested in the way civilizational constraints affect people—and what happens when the invisible rules governing daily life are rearranged.
—Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 26 Mar. 2026
Within 48 hours, the legal landscape governing social media and children shifted in ways that will take years to fully understand and verify.
—Carolina Rossini, The Conversation, 26 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for govern
Recent Examples of Synonyms for govern
Verb
-
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the challenge in the middle of oral arguments, even while ruling against the civil rights of Japanese American citizens in other cases considered at the same time.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Minnesota public universities can continue to offer in-state tuition and scholarships to some immigrants in the country without legal status, a federal judge ruled on Friday, dismissing a lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice last summer that attempted to halt the programs.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes by mimicking hormones that regulate blood sugar, the medication quickly became better known for its powerful impact on weight loss due to the way the same mimicking hormones affect appetite.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
-
As adoption of artificial intelligence in the US outpaces efforts to regulate it, organized labor is providing an important check on how the technology gets used, according to the head of the Hollywood actors’ union.—
Victor Swezey,
Fortune,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The moves follow South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's instruction on Tuesday to activate a preemptive emergency response system, as Seoul stepped up efforts to manage the economic fallout from the conflict.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
25 Mar. 2026
-
This project offers an alternative to a byproduct that distilleries currently find difficult and expensive to manage.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The vendor chalked this up to Apple controlling the entire update stack, as opposed to Android, where updates are likely fragmented across diverse manufacturers and device types.—
Will McCurdy,
PC Magazine,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Lenney also advocated for controlling the demand side of the market, addressing the housing crunch by restricting who could buy homes by banning large institutions from purchasing them as investments.—
Mark Dee
March 28,
Idaho Statesman,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The device, turned in by a visitor, contained more than 2,000 images and 100 videos of child pornography, along with photos of Catron, authorities said.—
Sergio Candido,
CBS News,
25 Mar. 2026
-
The report compiled by the Star-Telegram contains data from March 8 through March 21 and 365 inspections.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The backstory The resort opened as The Nam Hai in 2006 and operated as such for about a decade before it was acquired by Four Seasons.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Additionally, exercise caution if operating any equipment that could create sparks, and keep vehicles off of dry grass.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The road to the very long lines began in February, when Congress, in resolving a broader government shutdown (the second in four months, impressively), could not agree on how to keep funding Homeland Security.—
Benjamin Wallace-Wells,
New Yorker,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Wacha kept the Braves off the scoreboard while Salvador Perez provided the offense, hitting his first homer of the season and snapping a personal 15-inning scoreless streak.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In February, the judge overseeing the case dismissed several claims against the bank, but let stand two others.—
Chase Jordan,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Mar. 2026
-
One called Rabin’s government a Judenrat, the Nazi term for Jewish councils appointed to oversee ghettos.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Govern.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/govern. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
