monarch

noun

mon·​arch ˈmä-nərk 

-ˌnärk

1

: a person who reigns over a kingdom or empire: such as

a

: a sovereign ruler

b

: a constitutional (see constitutional entry 1 sense 1) king or queen

2

: one that holds preeminent position or power

Cotton, monarch of the textile world …

—Wall Street Journal

3

: monarch butterfly

monarchal

mə-ˈnär-kəl 

mä-

adjective

or monarchial

mə-ˈnär-kē-əl 

mä-

Synonyms of monarch

• ruler
• sovereign
• emperor

Examples of monarch in a Sentence

a new history of French monarchs

the ruling monarch of Britain at that time was Queen Elizabeth I

Recent Examples on the Web

The allegations from Charles Spencer are damaging for King Charles and the royal family, but speaking to people outside Buckingham Palace on Friday morning, CBS News found many who were sympathetic to the monarch. — Holly Williams, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026

It was held at Dumfries House in Ayrshire, Scotland, headquarters of The King’s Foundation, which is the monarch’s charity. — ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026

The couple said they were surprised by the way the monarch issued that statement because they were given little time to review it. — Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026

William represented the British royal family and walked behind the monarch’s coffin on Wednesday, September 9. — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 14 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin monarcha, from Greek monarchos, from mon- + -archos -arch

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing monarch

• monarch butterfly

Rhymes for monarch

• ballpark
• benchmark
• birthmark
• daymark
• earmark
• embark
• hallmark
• landmark
• postmark
• remark
• skylark
• tetrarch

Kids Definition

monarch

noun

mon·​arch ˈmän-ərk 

-ˌärk

1

: a person who reigns over a kingdom or empire: as

a

: a ruler who has total power

absolute monarch

b

: someone who acts primarily as chief of state and who has only limited powers

constitutional monarch

2

: someone or something like a monarch

the oak is the monarch of the forest

3

: monarch butterfly

monarchal

mə-ˈnär-kəl 

mä-

adjective

or monarchial

-kē-əl