as in dominion
controlling power or influence over others
a nation whose economic imperium waned after the war
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of imperium
Everyone in the imperium knows the emperor is a nincompoop—and yet no one wants to go out on a limb to criticize him.
—
Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2025
The Islamic Republic of Iran is motivated by a desire to bring about the end times and usher in an everlasting Islamic imperium.
—Mike Coté, National Review, 20 July 2025
Nintendo has built a reputation on its willingness to catch fans off-guard, and a shutterbug adventure was the last thing anyone expected at the zenith of Pokemon’s imperium.
—Luke Winkie, Vulture, 18 June 2025
Poland, through a protest movement, led the liberation of Europe from the Soviet imperium, culminating with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
—Roger Cohen, New York Times, 5 May 2024
Even the Commonwealth—long a convenient way to sustain a more symbolic form of cultural imperium—has lost much of its meaning.
—Fintan O’Toole, Foreign Affairs, 21 Feb. 2023
Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2025
The Islamic Republic of Iran is motivated by a desire to bring about the end times and usher in an everlasting Islamic imperium.
—Mike Coté, National Review, 20 July 2025
Nintendo has built a reputation on its willingness to catch fans off-guard, and a shutterbug adventure was the last thing anyone expected at the zenith of Pokemon’s imperium.
—Luke Winkie, Vulture, 18 June 2025
Poland, through a protest movement, led the liberation of Europe from the Soviet imperium, culminating with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
—Roger Cohen, New York Times, 5 May 2024
Even the Commonwealth—long a convenient way to sustain a more symbolic form of cultural imperium—has lost much of its meaning.
—Fintan O’Toole, Foreign Affairs, 21 Feb. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imperium
Noun
-
The British North America Act came into effect, uniting the separate territories of the Province of Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia into one dominion called Canada.—
USA Today,
USA Today,
17 June 2026
-
Italy has a colonial past, of course, and its government forces committed atrocities in areas under Italian dominion in East Africa between the 1880s and 1941.—
Kaitlyn Rabe,
The Conversation,
16 June 2026
Noun
-
Over the past 18 months, Blue Origin finally seemed to be gaining momentum, getting closer to reliably launching a gigantic rocket, called New Glenn, that could lift greater payloads and potentially challenge SpaceX’s domination of the sector.—
The Week US,
TheWeek,
16 June 2026
-
The Spanish domination of the game was complete – on paper.—
Don Riddell,
CNN Money,
15 June 2026
Noun
-
The agreement calls for a halt to military operations in Lebanon and for its sovereignty to be respected.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
20 June 2026
-
Losing, Jose said, would be a devastating blow, not only to the Tohono O’odham, but to all future claims of Indian sovereignty.—
Geraldo L. Cadava,
The Atlantic,
20 June 2026
Noun
-
SpaceX just notched a remarkable launch-dominance milestone.—
Mike Wall,
Space.com,
22 June 2026
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At the time of merger talks there was speculation the Gurnee Mariano’s wouldn’t make the cut because of the nearby Jewel’s long-time — the company name has been around since 1932 –market dominance across the region.—
Charles Selle,
Chicago Tribune,
22 June 2026
Noun
-
On Wednesday, Grier proved his absolute supremacy once again, swinging a deal to land defenseman Michael Kesselring from the Buffalo Sabres.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
17 June 2026
-
Tencent, from China, and Sony, from Japan, vie with Microsoft for supremacy at the top of the gaming leaderboard.—
Kamal Ahmed,
Fortune,
15 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Imperium.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imperium. Accessed 23 Jun. 2026.
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