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government

government

1.0
The way a country or community is run
  • noun
  • /ˈɡʌvərnmənt/
translation icon : sistema de gobierno
  • Why do we even have the government involved in marriage at all?
  • federal government
  • local government
  • government spending

Now the real problem is that government doesn't work like business.

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Examples

  • A stable government is essential for economic growth and national security.

  • And so this was an attempt at clean government and clean cities.

  • This House is the place where the government should be held to account.

  • And so Europe never had one government till now.

  • I think it is a part of the government media relationship.

  • Do you know what system of government we have here?

  • The strong support of the local government was perhaps 80% of the battle won.

    Academic text (2011)
  • We also know that high levels of government spending crowd out private consumption.

    Academic text (2011)
  • It has ended as it begun by a government breaking its word.

  • Other favorable factors included competent government personnel and a low level of corruption.

    Academic text (2011)

Synonyms

state
vsgovernment
3.2

The group that makes and enforces a country's laws

is the general system or process through which that authority operates
rule
vsgovernment
697 2.0

Control of a country by a person or group

is the organized system and procedures through which that control works
regime
vsgovernment
  • Literature
535 6.1

A government that rules a country, often not democratic and strict

is neutral and does not imply a particular style of rule
administration
vsgovernment
161 3.3

Managing and organizing the work of a government or organization

is wider, covering the whole system rather than just management tasks
political system
vsgovernment
86 3.4

The people, groups, and laws that govern a country

focuses more on the everyday process of governing rather than structure
governance
vsgovernment
  • Specialized
83 5.6

How a country or organization is run and who makes decisions

is the broader named system used to describe a country's rule
governing body
vsgovernment
17 3.4

A group of people or organization that manages and sets rules for an institution

is the overall system or process that grants and uses such authority
polity
vsgovernment
  • Specialized
8 7.7

A country or area with its own government and laws

is the functioning process that governs such an organization
officialdom
vsgovernment
  • Literature
3 7.3

A group of people who work in government offices

is the institutional system through which those officials act
govt
vsgovernment
2 3.5

The group of people who run a country

is the system or process organizing public authority

Compounds

A national government that shares power with state governments but keeps strong central power

294 2.6

The national government of the United States with executive, legislative, and judicial branches

A person elected or appointed to carry out government work

The national group of leaders and institutions like the president, Congress, and the courts

People who run a town or city and provide local services

An official part of the government that provides a public service

68 2.4

Government that runs a state in the United States and provides services like schools and roads

US Government
  • Formal
61 3.2

The national government of the United States that makes and enforces laws through three branches

A building where government offices are

A person who works for the government and acts for it

A place where government workers do official work for the public

government bond
  • Specialized
14 2.7

A loan to a government that pays interest over time and is usually safe

A group or region that makes and follows its own rules without outside control

7 5.6

The army rules a country after it takes power

A part of government that runs public services like schools

Money a country gets from taxes and other sources to pay for public services

A person in the government who leads a department and makes rules about it

A local group of people who run a city or town

Supplies like uniforms or food given by the government to soldiers

A temporary group of leaders who live outside their country and plan to return to lead it

puppet government
  • Literature
3 5.8

A government run by another country that does what the other country wants and has little real power

Action by a government that goes too far and controls private life or business

Actions by the people who run a country or city

government security
  • Specialized
1 4.0

A bond or note that a government sells to borrow money

A former U.S. agency that printed and bound official government documents

Money a government gets, mainly from taxes, to pay for public services

A person who works for the state in an official job

A division of local government that provides services like waste collection and road repair

Paper money issued by a country's central bank used to buy things

government man
  • Archaic
6.7

A male federal agent who enforces the law

An independent U.S. agency that helps Congress check how the government spends public money

An independent agency that checks how the U.S. government spends money and reports to Congress

A former U.S. government agency that printed and bound official documents for Congress and other federal offices

A former government office that made and put together official United States documents for Congress and federal departments

A phrase used to describe the Israeli government that controls Palestinian areas, often used as an insult

How Centralized

centralism
1 7.5
government
1.0
local authority
  • UK
51 3.4

Surface Forms

government singular
governments plural

Morphology

government = govern (transparent) = govern + ment

A regular nominalization: 'govern' + '-ment' yields an abstract noun for the act, system, or institution of governing, which learners can infer from the verb.

Etymology

Government comes from an old word meaning 'to steer' or 'to guide', and you can see the same root in governor. So a government is the system that 'steers' a country.