1
as in ruling
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 regulating
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 managing
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 governing
The organization noted that Skydive Kansas City is a member in good standing of the sport’s governing body, and is cooperating with local authorities and federal investigators to determine the cause of the crash.
—
Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 16 June 2026
Within a year, authorities must regulate procedures governing the country’s cattle identification and traceability systems and establish due diligence requirements for deforestation-free cattle ranching.
—Steven Grattan, Los Angeles Times, 15 June 2026
At the center are the lawmaking and governing institutions.
—Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
In Australia, the Professional Football Referees Association and governing body Football Australia were contacted for comment.
—ABC News, 15 June 2026
That’s because your personal circumstance and finances (such as other sources of retirement income and your tax bracket) can be complex and so are the Social Security rules governing them.
—Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Money, 14 June 2026
The governing standard predates this technology by years.
—Dara-Abasi Ita, Forbes.com, 14 June 2026
Neither a spokesperson for Cape Verde’s soccer federation nor FIFA, international soccer’s governing body, responded to a request for comment.
—Nicolas Villamil, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 June 2026
Of note, recognizing these concerns, the commission voted in December 2025 to establish an ad hoc Governance Committee to review all governing documents and create policies and procedures to allow the pension commission to fulfill its fiduciary duties.
—Helen I. Bennett, Hartford Courant, 8 June 2026
Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 16 June 2026
Within a year, authorities must regulate procedures governing the country’s cattle identification and traceability systems and establish due diligence requirements for deforestation-free cattle ranching.
—Steven Grattan, Los Angeles Times, 15 June 2026
At the center are the lawmaking and governing institutions.
—Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
In Australia, the Professional Football Referees Association and governing body Football Australia were contacted for comment.
—ABC News, 15 June 2026
That’s because your personal circumstance and finances (such as other sources of retirement income and your tax bracket) can be complex and so are the Social Security rules governing them.
—Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Money, 14 June 2026
The governing standard predates this technology by years.
—Dara-Abasi Ita, Forbes.com, 14 June 2026
Neither a spokesperson for Cape Verde’s soccer federation nor FIFA, international soccer’s governing body, responded to a request for comment.
—Nicolas Villamil, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 June 2026
Of note, recognizing these concerns, the commission voted in December 2025 to establish an ad hoc Governance Committee to review all governing documents and create policies and procedures to allow the pension commission to fulfill its fiduciary duties.
—Helen I. Bennett, Hartford Courant, 8 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for governing
Verb
-
Shasta County Superior Court judges denied two prior lawsuits that aimed to block Measure B from appearing on the ballot, including one from Shasta County’s attorney Joseph Larmour, without ruling on the substance of their cases.—
Ben Paviour,
Sacbee.com,
13 June 2026
-
However, in June 2025, a federal judge dismissed Baldoni's countersuit, ruling that many of the statements at issue were legally protected and that the claims did not meet the legal standards required to proceed.—
Janelle Ash , Lauryn Overhultz,
FOXNews.com,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
Such a drone boat is supposedly capable of continuous, autonomous loiter operations in which the Corsair maintains its position while autonomously regulating power consumption and only engaging its engine when needed, according to a Saronic blog post.—
Jeremy Hsu,
ArsTechnica,
9 June 2026
-
The court’s abdication of its modern responsibility for supervising electoral democracy seems to rest on the naive belief that democracy will succeed in regulating itself.—
Noah Feldman,
Mercury News,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
The Spurs jumped out to a 29-point lead in Game 4 at Madison Square Garden before turning into a shell of themselves, somehow managing to give up the massive lead and hand the Knicks the largest comeback in NBA Finals history.—
Mark Harris OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
14 June 2026
-
France have been to the final of the last two World Cups and have deep experience of managing pressure in late rounds, and would be expected to see off the likes of Germany and The Netherlands on their way to the semifinal.—
Sam Leveridge,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
By controlling fluid flow within the system, the device can gently squeeze the wearer's finger and wrist to recreate realistic touch sensations, demonstrating potential applications in virtual reality, teleoperation, rehabilitation, and next-generation wearable interfaces.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
12 June 2026
-
These sugars play an important role in controlling how cells interact with their surroundings.—
Charles J. Dimitroff,
The Conversation,
12 June 2026
Verb
-
Officials provided no information on crews’ progress in containing the blaze.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
-
New analysis published today by the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN) reveals there are over 621 trillion miles of fungal pathways containing around 300 megatons of carbon within Earth’s topsoils.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
One hip-hop artist operating a DJ stand inside the perimeter said young fans were looking to be part of something bigger.—
Antonio Ferme,
Variety,
11 June 2026
-
The system is operating under sustained and well-documented pressure that has built over time as caseloads have increased, cases have become more complex, and resources have not always kept pace with demand.—
Tim Dunn,
Boston Herald,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Over time, as the fines began to stack up, the FMF began to launch campaigns aimed at curbing the chant.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
11 June 2026
-
If the administration’s push to bring back imports does end up curbing grocery-store prices, ranchers’ loss will be consumers’ gain.—
Will Gottsegen,
The Atlantic,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
During her tenure overseeing environmental protection efforts in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin, Shore, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, said utilities were beginning to develop closure and remediation plans for older disposal sites.—
Christiana Freitag,
Chicago Tribune,
13 June 2026
-
Alex Young of Hidden Pictures will also exec produce, with Honey Trap’s Kaylee McGregor co-producing, and Chelsea Kujawa and Maria Ascanio overseeing the film for Lionsgate.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
11 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Governing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/governing. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
