sovereign
noun
- monarchical ruler
- type of coin
- English gold coin
adjective
- independent
- leader of a monarchy
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈsɒv.ɹɪn/ / /ˈsɑv(ə)ɹɪn/ / /ˈsɑvɚn/
adj
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. Doublet of souverain. See also suzerain, foreign.
- Exercising power of rule.
“sovereign nation”
- Exceptional in quality.
“Her voice was her sovereign talent.”
- Extremely potent or effective (of a medicine, remedy etc.).
“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 […]”
“[…] God save the mark!— And telling me the sovereign’st thing on earth Was parmaceti for an inward bruise;”
- Having supreme, ultimate power.
“Gentlemen, may I introduce Her Royal Highness, the Sovereign and Most Imperial Majesty, Empress Elizabeth of Vicron.”
“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.”
- Princely; royal.
“You pity not the state, nor the remembrance of his most sovereign name.”
- Predominant; greatest; utmost; paramount.
“We acknowledge him [God] our sovereign good.”
name
Etymology: Americanized form of an unidentified German surname.
- A surname from German.
noun
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. Doublet of souverain. See also suzerain, foreign.
- A monarch; the ruler of a country.
“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.”
“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. […]”
- One who is not a subject to a ruler or nation.
- One who is not a subject to a ruler or nation.
“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.”
- A gold coin of the United Kingdom, with a nominal value of one pound sterling but in practice used as a bullion coin.
- A former Australian gold coin, minted from 1855–1931, of one pound value.
- A very large champagne bottle with the capacity of about 25 liters, equivalent to 33+¹⁄₃ standard bottles.
- Any butterfly of the tribe Nymphalini, or genus Basilarchia, eg., ursula, viceroy.
- A large, garish ring; a sovereign ring.
“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’.”
“No visible tattoos, sovereigns, mismatched jewellery, scrunchies, large clips or hoop earrings.”
verb
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. Doublet of souverain. See also suzerain, foreign.
- To rule over as a sovereign.