sovereignty

noun

ˈsä-v(ə-)rən-tē How to pronounce sovereignty (audio)
variants also sovranty
Definition of sovereigntynext
1
as in autonomy
the state of being free from the control or power of another upon leaving home she felt that she had achieved sovereignty for the first time in her life

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2
as in nation
a body of people composed of one or more nationalities usually with its own territory and government as parts of the same sovereignty, the states should not enact laws intended to harm one another economically

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3
as in dominion
controlling power or influence over others the gradual sovereignty of English as the language of international communication

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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 sovereignty From the Houthis’ perspective, their sovereignty consequently remained incomplete. — Laurent Bonnefoy, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026 The military operation there aims to restore sovereignty and confront the Houthi militia that’s attacking not just Saudi Arabia and Yemen, but the arteries of the global economy. — Faisal J. Abbas, semafor.com, 9 Oct. 2026 Attorneys for the Wilton Rancheria have argued that the 2017 agreement explicitly said the tribe’s code would govern labor relations at the casino, and disregarding that labor code would disregard the tribe’s sovereignty. — Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026 Israel regards Jerusalem as its capital, while Britain and much of the international community do not recognize Israeli sovereignty over east Jerusalem, which Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War and subsequently annexed. — Dov Lieber, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sovereignty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sovereignty
  1. autonomy
  2. nation
  3. dominion
  4. independence
  5. state
  6. supremacy
  7. freedom
  8. country
Noun
  • The problem, Snegovaya said, is that achieving military autonomy for Europe and Ukraine is extremely difficult in the short term, and Europe has been slow to develop the necessary capabilities.
    — Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 17 Oct. 2026
  • CoreMotion is intended to address this integration challenge by providing a common control layer between autonomy software and vehicle hardware.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of autonomy
Noun
  • Mohave County, where Bullhead City is located, has higher poverty and unemployment rates than the state and nation, with a lower per-capita income, according to Census and state unemployment data.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
  • As reported, De Beers and the government of the Republic of Botswana have tapped the Olympic gold medal athlete Letsile Tebogo to promote the African nation as a heartland of natural diamonds, and to mark its 60 years of independence.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of nation
Noun
  • The twentieth century also saw Canada transition from British dominion to sovereign North American partner and ally.
    — Robert B. Zoellick, Foreign Affairs, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Faced with the dominion of the identical copy, some modern artists chose to celebrate it; others took a more critical, even antagonistic stance.
    — Mario Carpo, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of dominion
Noun
  • Bringing these creative brands together, giving producers access to a broader pool of talent, IP and resources, while preserving their independence is what differentiates Mediawan.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The higher the required SIL, the greater the required risk reduction and the more demanding the design, verification and independence of the safety function.
    — Gregory Shahnovsky, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of independence
Noun
  • That answer is unlikely to satisfy many Democratic primary voters, according to a poll of six early primary states conducted by YouGov on behalf of the Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Multiple states now restrict forever chemicals, with Minnesota last year banning the intentional addition of PFAS to 11 categories of consumer products, including dental floss.
    — Margaret Hetherman The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of state
Noun
  • China and the United States are engaged in a high-stakes battle for AI supremacy.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Ternus, a product engineering savant, has been establishing himself by rolling out new devices meant to cement Apple’s hardware supremacy, most notably the company’s first foldable phone, the iPhone Duo, which Ternus unveiled in September.
    — Sebastian Herrera, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of supremacy
Noun
  • The row reached the competition jury’s press conference the day after the opening ceremony, where a reporter raised the question of historical fact and creative freedom.
    — Ophélie Surcouf, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The efforts by Huawei and other Chinese chipmakers to squeeze more performance out of less sophisticated hardware are impressive—but the results are still workarounds compared with the freedom Nvidia or AMD have.
    — Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of freedom
Noun
  • The 20 countries at greatest risk of a worsening humanitarian crisis, ranked by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) annually in our Emergency Watchlist, represent just 12% of the global population, but 90% of those in humanitarian need.
    — David Miliband, Time, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Many other countries and even continents would kill to have this level of ingenuity on their shores.
    — Sarah Cannon, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of country

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sovereignties
sovereignty
Sovietism
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Cite this Entry

“Sovereignty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sovereignty. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on sovereignty

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sovereignty

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