sovereign

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See also: Sovereign

English

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Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle English sovereyn, from Old French soverain (whence also modern French souverain), from Vulgar Latin *superānus (compare Italian sovrano, Spanish soberano) from Latin super (“above”). Spelling influenced by folk-etymology association with reign. Doublet of soprano, from the same Latin root via Italian. See also suzerain, foreign.

Pronunciation

Adjective

sovereign (comparative more sovereign, superlative most sovereign)

  1. Exercising power of rule.
    sovereign nation
  2. Exceptional in quality.
    Her voice was her sovereign talent.
  3. (now rare, pharmacology) Extremely potent or effective (of a medicine, remedy etc.).
    • 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto V”, in The Faerie Queene. , London: [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:
      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 […]
    • 1876, John Davies, “”, in Alexander B Grosart, editor, The Complete Poems of Sir John Davies. Edited, with Memorial-Introduction and Notes, by the Rev. Alexander B. Grosart. In Two Volumes (Early English Poets), volume II, London: Chatto and Windus, Piccadilly, →OCLC, page 226:
      Homer of Moly and Nepenthe singes:
      Moly, the gods most soveraigne hearbe divine.
      Nepenth Hellen's drink, which gladnes brings,—
      Hart's greife repells, and doth ye witts refine.
    • 1681, John Dryden, The Spanish Fryar: Or, the Double Discovery. , London: Richard Tonson and Jacob Tonson, , →OCLC, (please specify the page number):
      a sovereign remedy
    • 1692–1717, Robert South, Twelve Sermons Preached upon Several Occasions, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London:
      Such a sovereign influence has this passion upon the regulation of the lives and actions of men.
    • 1900, James George Frazer, The Golden Bough, volume 3, page 297:
      In Spain people still bathe in the sea or roll naked in the dew of the meadows on St. John’s Eve, believing that this is a sovereign preservative against diseases of the skin.
  4. Having supreme, ultimate power.
    Gentlemen, may I introduce Her Royal Highness, the Sovereign and Most Imperial Majesty, Empress Elizabeth of Vicron.
    • 1972, Brian Potter, Dennis Lambert (lyrics and music), “Keeper of the Castle”, performed by The Four Tops:
      You're the keeper of the castle
      So be a father to your children
      The provider of all their daily needs
      Like a sovereign Lord protector
      Be their destiny's director
      And they'll do well to follow where you lead.
  5. Princely; royal.
  6. Predominant; greatest; utmost; paramount.
    • 1594–1597, Richard Hooker, edited by J S, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, , London: Will Stansby , published 1611, →OCLC, (please specify the page):
      We acknowledge him our sovereign good.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

sovereign (plural sovereigns)

A sovereign
  2. A monarch; the ruler of a country.
    • 1594, William Shakespeare, Lucrece (First Quarto)‎, London: Richard Field, for Iohn Harrison, , →OCLC:
      The petty ſtreames that paie a dailie det
      To their ſalt ſoveraigne with their freſh fals haſt,
      Adde to his flowe, but alter not his taſt.
    • 1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. , London: [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker ; nd by Robert Boulter ; nd Matthias Walker, , →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: , London: Basil Montagu Pickering , 1873, →OCLC, lines 242-249:
      Is this the Region, this the Soil, the Clime,
      Said then the lost Archangel, this the seat
      That we must change for Heaven?, this mournful gloom
      For that celestial light? Be it so, since hee
      Who now is Sovran can dispose and bid
      What shall be right : fardest from him is best
      Whom reason hath equald, force hath made supream
      Above his equals. […]
    • 1785, Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia:
      No question is to be made but that the bed of the Missisippi belongs to the sovereign, that is, to the nation.
  3. One who is not a subject to a ruler or nation.
    1. Ellipsis of sovereign citizen.
      • 2019 March 29, Ashley Powers, “How Sovereign Citizens Helped Swindle $1 Billion From the Government They Disavow”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:
        A loose network of perhaps tens of thousands of far-right antigovernment extremists, sovereigns share certain conspiratorial beliefs and, sometimes, a desire to profit off a government whose legitimacy they deny.
  5. A gold coin of the United Kingdom, with a nominal value of one pound sterling but in practice used as a bullion coin.
  6. A former Australian gold coin, minted from 1855–1931, of one pound value.
  7. A very large champagne bottle with the capacity of about 25 liters, equivalent to 33+1⁄3 standard bottles.
  8. Any butterfly of the tribe Nymphalini, or genus Basilarchia, eg., ursula, viceroy.
  9. (UK, slang) A large, garish ring; a sovereign ring.
    • 2004, December 11, "Birkenhead, Merseyside" BBC Voices recording (0:06:52)
      No, someone who wears loads of sovereigns as well loads of gold and has uh a curly perm and peroxide blonde hair, orange, orange sunbed skin and a fringe like this blow-dried to death, that’s a ‘scally’.
    • 2011 July 1, Caroline Davies, “Harrods 'ladies' code' drives out sales assistant”, in The Guardian‎:
      No visible tattoos, sovereigns, mismatched jewellery, scrunchies, large clips or hoop earrings.

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Descendants

  • → Irish: sabhran
  • → Russian: соверен (soveren)
  • → Scottish Gaelic: sòbharan
  • → Welsh: sofren

Translations

See also

Verb

sovereign (third-person singular simple present sovereigns, present participle sovereigning, simple past and past participle sovereigned)

  1. (transitive) To rule over as a sovereign.

Anagrams

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