1
as in independent
not being under the rule or control of another
she left home and became entirely self-governing and financially independent at the age of 18
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in democratic
of, relating to, or favoring political democracy
a self-governing nation that could be a role model for other countries in the region
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of self-governing
The final package fell far short of what President Lai Ching-te insisted was necessary to prepare the self-governing island for a potential Chinese attack.
—
Scott Tong,
NPR,
11 June 2026
China claims the self-governing island as its territory and sanctioned four New Zealand lawmakers on Thursday to protest their recent visit.
—
ABC News,
4 June 2026
Taiwan’s Beijing-friendly opposition leader headed to the US for meetings with lawmakers at a time when Washington’s commitment to the self-governing island has been cast in doubt.
—
Prashant Rao,
semafor.com,
1 June 2026
China claims the democratic self-governing island as its own, and Xi has not ruled out using force to take it.
—
David Rising,
Los Angeles Times,
30 May 2026
These comments came after recent talks between Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about American support for the self-governing island.
—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
14 May 2026
When those three things come together, patient safety stops being a values statement and becomes a self-governing system.
—
Joe Kiani,
Fortune,
24 Apr. 2026
The collection of 18 islands between Scotland and Iceland is a self-governing region of Denmark, and the 54,000 people who live there have their own language, parliament, and culture distinct from the Danes.
—
Callie Radke Stevens,
Condé Nast Traveler,
4 Aug. 2025
Scott Tong,
NPR,
11 June 2026
China claims the self-governing island as its territory and sanctioned four New Zealand lawmakers on Thursday to protest their recent visit.
—
ABC News,
4 June 2026
Taiwan’s Beijing-friendly opposition leader headed to the US for meetings with lawmakers at a time when Washington’s commitment to the self-governing island has been cast in doubt.
—
Prashant Rao,
semafor.com,
1 June 2026
China claims the democratic self-governing island as its own, and Xi has not ruled out using force to take it.
—
David Rising,
Los Angeles Times,
30 May 2026
These comments came after recent talks between Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about American support for the self-governing island.
—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
14 May 2026
When those three things come together, patient safety stops being a values statement and becomes a self-governing system.
—
Joe Kiani,
Fortune,
24 Apr. 2026
The collection of 18 islands between Scotland and Iceland is a self-governing region of Denmark, and the 54,000 people who live there have their own language, parliament, and culture distinct from the Danes.
—
Callie Radke Stevens,
Condé Nast Traveler,
4 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-governing
Adjective
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Murdaugh’s attorneys filed several pretrial motions last week, including requests for a change of venue, for further independent testing of DNA evidence and for Murdaugh to get access to a computer behind bars.
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Audiences are very motivated to support independent filmmakers, and that’s a good thing for all of us.
Adjective
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The 34-year-old democratic socialist's choices were pitted against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, also of New York, in what will likely be viewed as a big and successful early test at establishing a new faction within the national party.
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Elsewhere in New York, Mayor Zohran Mamdani is trying to prove his democratic socialist political movement can outlast his own campaign and reshape Congress.
Adjective
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The robot is designed for 24/7 operation, with autonomous charging and hot-swappable dual batteries minimizing downtime.
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In the federal filing, Waymo says the autonomous vehicle may enter and drive at speed in freeway construction zones because the software may fail to recognize the zone or may prioritize avoiding other freeway hazards.
Adjective
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However, the dream of fully sovereign AI inevitably runs up against hard constraints around compute, capital, and energy.
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The firm raised the money from regional sovereign wealth funds and global investors, Bloomberg reported.
Cite this Entry
“Self-governing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-governing. Accessed 1 Jul. 2026.
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