as in democracy
government in which the supreme power is held by the people and used by them directly or indirectly through representation
the newly created United States opted for self-rule rather than monarchy
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Recent Examples of self-rule
Facing harassment and even death threats, confronting high unemployment, and deeply skeptical of the country’s new Sunni Islamist leadership, some Druze have begun to call for self-rule, international protection, or even alignment with neighboring Israel.
—
Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 11 June 2025
Nevertheless, for geographies that yearn for self-rule because they’ve been denied it so long, nationalism has a strong appeal - which includes strong borders as part of national sovereignty.
—Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 14 May 2025
Cairo needed—and the Carter administration wanted—the Israeli-Egyptian agreement to be tied to some kind of process toward self-rule for the millions of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza.
—Timothy Naftali, Foreign Affairs, 2 May 2025
Kashmir was assigned special status—enshrined in Article 370—and afforded significant powers of self-rule.
—Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
Although Denmark oversees foreign and defense policy, Greenland has steadily expanded its self-rule since gaining home rule in 1979.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Apr. 2025
Financial Pathfinders actively listen and respect your right to self-rule, tailoring suggestions to your specific situation, style and beliefs.
—Brian Lasher, Forbes, 25 Mar. 2025
Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 11 June 2025
Nevertheless, for geographies that yearn for self-rule because they’ve been denied it so long, nationalism has a strong appeal - which includes strong borders as part of national sovereignty.
—Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 14 May 2025
Cairo needed—and the Carter administration wanted—the Israeli-Egyptian agreement to be tied to some kind of process toward self-rule for the millions of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza.
—Timothy Naftali, Foreign Affairs, 2 May 2025
Kashmir was assigned special status—enshrined in Article 370—and afforded significant powers of self-rule.
—Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
Although Denmark oversees foreign and defense policy, Greenland has steadily expanded its self-rule since gaining home rule in 1979.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Apr. 2025
Financial Pathfinders actively listen and respect your right to self-rule, tailoring suggestions to your specific situation, style and beliefs.
—Brian Lasher, Forbes, 25 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-rule
democracy
Noun
-
Europe’s fundamental values are prosperity, equity, freedom, peace and democracy in a sustainable environment.—
David Doty,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
-
On the other end of the spectrum, Peru is widely seen as having extremely weak institutions and is ranked 78th in The Economist’s democracy index.—
Sofía Benavides,
CNN Money,
14 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Self-rule.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-rule. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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