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
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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
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The fight to fly ultralights from the Yuba County Airport has continued months after the county ended its yearslong ban of the small aircraft, with the Federal Aviation Administration now poised to rule on the claims of discrimination and lack of compliance alleged by ultralight pilots.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
4 Apr. 2026
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The medical examiner ruled Mitchell's death a homicide from blunt force trauma, according to prosecutors.—
DeJanay Booth-Singleton,
CBS News,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
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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
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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
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And across these two games, England managed just one goal, when Ben White tapped in on Friday.—
Jack Pitt-Brooke,
New York Times,
1 Apr. 2026
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Officials state the move will place leadership closer to the Western lands the agency manages and improve its mission.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Organic pesticides can still have environmental impacts because they are designed to control living organisms.—
Anthony Reardon,
Kansas City Star,
4 Apr. 2026
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But the website isn’t full of articles about how the earth is flat or how aliens are controlling our government.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In addition, motions in which the prosecution opposed mental health diversions for two defendants contained similar errors, Stuart wrote.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
1 Apr. 2026
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The Jumping Branch fire has spread to 275 acres and is only 30% contained, state officials said Tuesday.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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More importantly, Slaughter expanded her game, operating more in the post, rebounding at a higher level and continuing to handle the ball effectively.—
Aaron Segal,
Kansas City Star,
4 Apr. 2026
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In a statement Friday, before the AALA results were released, a district spokesperson said school operations would depend on which employees participate in a strike, ranging from campuses remaining open to operating with limited services or potentially closing.—
Teresa Liu,
Daily News,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
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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
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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
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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
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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 4 Apr. 2026.
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