governor
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: note: UK, non-rhotic
ipa: /ˈɡʌv(ə)nə(ɹ)/
note: US, rhotic
ipa: /ˈɡʌvɚnɚ/
note: US, non-rhotic
ipa: /ˈɡʌvənə(ɹ)/
note: US, rhotic, r-dissimilation
ipa: /ˈɡʌvənɚ/
Forms: form: governors
form: gouernour
form: gouvernor
form: gouvernour
form: governer
form: governour
form: guvnah
form: guvnuh
Etymology: From Middle English governour, from Old French gouvreneur, from Latin gubernator, from Ancient Greek κυβερνήτης (kubernḗtēs, “steersman, pilot, guide”), from κυβερνάω (kubernáō, “to steer, to drive, to guide, to act as a pilot”), of disputed origin. By surface analysis, govern + -or. Doublet of gubernator. Doublet of cybernetics and Kubernetes.
Senses: examples: text: Younger voters are more libertarian in political philosophy than older voters and are credited with the success of libertarian governor Jesse Ventura of Minnesota.
ref: 1999, Karen O'Connor, The essentials of American government: continuity and change, page 17
text: Top aides and people close to Kamala Harris have divided over whether she should head home to run for California governor in 2026 — and it all comes down to whether they believe she could win the Democratic nomination for president in an expected competitive primary in 2028.
ref: 2024 December 15, Edward-Isaac Dovere, “Harris debates her future: A run for California governor that would take 2028 off the table”, in CNN:
text: But gender is a factor both candidates will navigate in a country that has elected just 51 female state governors in its history.
ref: 2025 June 17, Eva McKend, “Virginia will elect its first female governor this fall. Neither candidate is talking much about it”, in CNN:
topics: government
politics
coordinate_terms: governor general
viceroy
glosses: The chief executive officer of a first-level administrative division of a country.
examples: text: Generator excitation is obtained by a combination of the separately-excited and self-excited fields, and the output is controlled by a resistance in the separate field circuit adjusted by the load regulator under the control of the engine governor.
ref: 1961 October, “The first 1,250 h.p. Birmingham/Sulzer Type 2 diesels enter service”, in Trains Illustrated, page 607:
text: The turning point came in 1923, says Norton, when 42,000 Cincinnati residents signed a petition for a ballot initiative that would require all cars to have a governor limiting them to 25 miles per hour.
ref: 2015 November 4, Joseph Stromberg, “The forgotten history of how automakers invented the crime of "jaywalking"”, in Vox:
coordinate_terms: modulator
regulator
synchronizer
glosses: A device which regulates or controls some action of a machine through automatic feedback.
examples: text: The seven members of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
ref: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, www.federalreserve.gov (November 6, 2009)
text: Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and head of the country’s foreign exchange regulator, chaired a symposium with representatives from foreign companies, including JP Morgan, Tesla (TSLA), HSBC (HSBC), Deutsche Bank (DB), BNP Paribas, Japan’s MUFG Bank, German chemical producer BASF, commodities trader Trafigura and Schneider Electric, according to a statement posted on the websites of the PBOC and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE).
ref: 2023 September 19, Laura He, “China woos Tesla, JP Morgan and other Western companies as foreign investment slumps”, in CNN Business:
glosses: A member of a decision-making body (such as a committee) for a larger organization or entity (including some public agencies), similar to or equivalent to a board of directors (used especially for banks); a member of the board of governors.
examples: text: "Say 'father.' We never called him papa; and if one of my brothers had addressed him as 'governor,' as boys do now, I really think he'd have him cut off with a shilling."
ref: 1869, Louisa May Alcott, An Old-Fashioned Girl:
glosses: Father.
glosses: Boss; employer; gaffer.
glosses: Term of address to a man; guv'nor.
topics: grammar
human-sciences
linguistics
sciences
glosses: A constituent of a phrase that governs another.
coordinate_terms: governess
glosses: One who has the care or guardianship of a young man; a tutor; a guardian.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: A pilot; a steersman.
Synonyms: sense: head of a province
english: of large divisions of a kingdom or empire
translation: of large divisions of a kingdom or empire
word: viceroy
sense: head of a province
english: of Roman regions
translation: of Roman regions
word: proconsul
sense: head of a province
word: bailiff
sense: head of a province
word: seneschal
sense: head of a province
english: of French regions
translation: of French regions
word: intendant
sense: head of a province
word: tao tai
sense: head of a province
word: circuit intendant
sense: head of a province
word: intendant
sense: head of a province
english: of Chinese regions
translation: of Chinese regions
word: daotai
sense: head of a province
word: provost
sense: head of a province
word: gubernator
Derived terms: archgovernor
centrifugal governor
cogovernor
Governator
governoress
Governor Generoso
governorly
governorship
gov
gov.
gov'nor
guv
guv'nor
lieutenant governor
subgovernor
undergovernor
Related terms: govern
government
governorate
governor-general
governor general
Governor-General
Governor General
gubernatorial
Kubernetes
self-govern