sovereign

English

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Old French soverain (whence also modern French souverain), from Vulgar Latin root *superānus (cf. Italian sovrano, Spanish soberano) from Latin super (“above”). Spelling influenced by folk-etymology association with reign. See also suzerain.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈsɒv.rɪn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

sovereign (comparative more sovereign, superlative most sovereign)

1. Exercising power of rule.

   sovereign nation

2. Exceptional in quality.
3. (now rare) Extremely potent or effective (of a medicine, remedy etc.).
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.v:

     The soueraigne weede betwixt two marbles plaine / She pownded small, and did in peeces bruze, / And then atweene her lilly handes twaine, / Into his wound the iuyce thereof did scruze [...].

4. Having supreme, ultimate power.

Derived terms

• sovereignly

Synonyms

• autonomous
• supreme

Translations

exercising power of rule

• Catalan: sobirà (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 自主的 (cmn) (zìzhǔ de), 獨立的 (cmn), 独立的 (cmn) (dúlì de)

• Czech: svrchovaný (cs)
• Dutch: soeverein (nl)
• Esperanto: suverena (eo)
• Finnish: itsenäinen (fi), suvereeni (fi)
• French: souverain (fr)
• Galician: soberano (gl)
• German: souverän (de)
• Indonesian: berdaulat (id)
• Interlingua: soveran (ia)
• Irish: ardcheannasach (ga), ceannasach (ga)

• Italian: sovrano (it)
• Japanese: 独立した (ja) (どくりつした, dokuritsu-shita), 自立した (ja) (じりつした, jiritsu-shita)
• Macedonian: суверен (mk) (súveren) m
• Manx: ard-reeoil (gv)
• Occitan: sobeiran (oc)
• Portuguese: soberano (pt)
• Romanian: suveran (ro)
• Russian: суверенный (ru) (suverénnyj)
• Spanish: soberano (es)
• Swedish: självständig (sv), suverän (sv)
• Telugu: సార్వభౌమ (te) (saarvabhauma), సర్వసత్తాక (te) (sarvasattaaka)
• Turkish: egemen (tr)
• Volapük: soveränik (vo)

exceptional in quality

• Finnish: erinomainen (fi), suvereeni (fi)
• Japanese: 卓越した (ja) (takuetsu shita)

• Swedish: suverän (sv)

Noun

sovereign (plural sovereigns)

1. A monarch; the ruler of a country.
   • Jefferson

     No question is to be made but that the bed of the Mississippi belongs to the sovereign, that is, to the nation.

2. One who is not a subject to a ruler or nation.
3. A gold coin formerly used in the United Kingdom.
4. A very large champagne bottle with the capacity of about 25 liters, equivalent to 33⅓ standard bottles.
5. Any butterfly of the tribe Nymphalidi, or genus Basilarchia, as the ursula and the viceroy.

Synonyms

• king
• monarch
• queen

Derived terms

• sovereignty

Translations

monarch

• Bashkir: батша (batša)
• Catalan: sobirà (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 君主 (cmn) (jūnzhǔ)

• Czech: vládce (cs) m, panovník (cs) m
• Dutch: vorst (nl) m
• Esperanto: suvereno (eo)
• Finnish: monarkki (fi), hallitsija (fi), valtias (fi)
• French: souverain (fr) m
• Galician: soberano (gl) m, soberana (gl) f
• German: Souverän (de)
• Hungarian: uralkodó (hu)
• Ido: rejo (io)
• Indonesian: penguasa (id)

• Interlingua: soverano (ia)
• Italian: sovrano (it)
• Japanese: 君主 (ja) (くんしゅ, kunshu)
• Macedonian: владетел (mk) (vládetel) m, суверен (mk) (súveren) m
• Manx: ard-ree (gv) m
• Portuguese: suserano (pt) m
• Russian: суверен (ru) (suverén) m, властитель (ru) (vlastítel') m, монарх (ru) (monárx) m
• Spanish: soberano (es)
• Swedish: regent (sv) c
• Volapük: soveran (vo)

one who is not a subject to a ruler or nation

• French: souverain (fr) m

coin

• Catalan: sobirà (ca) m
• Finnish: ‎punnan kultaraha
• French: souverain (fr) m

• Macedonian: соверин (mk) (sóverin) m
• Manx: punt airhey (gv) m
• Russian: соверен (ru) (sóveren) m

very large champagne bottle

• French: souverain (fr) m

See also

• half sovereign/half-sovereign