sovereign
pronunciation
How to pronounce sovereign in British English:
UK [ˈsɒvrɪn]
How to pronounce sovereign in American English:
US [ˈsɑːvrɪn]
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- Noun:
- a nation's ruler or head of state usually by hereditary right
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- Adjective:
- of political bodies
- greatest in status or authority or power
Word Origin
- sovereign
- sovereign: [13] A sovereign is etymologically someone who is ‘above’ others. The word comes via Old French souverein ‘ruler’, a descendant of Vulgar Latin *superānus. This was derived from the Latin preposition super ‘above’. In the 1490s the term was applied to a gold coin worth 22s 6d (£1.12½), a usage which served as a model in 1817 for its application to a gold coin worth one pound.=> super
- sovereign (n.)
- late 13c., "superior, ruler, master," from Old French soverain "sovereign, lord, ruler," noun use of adjective meaning "highest, supreme, chief" (see sovereign (adj.)). Meaning "gold coin worth 22s 6d" first recorded late 15c.; value changed 1817 to 1 pound.
- sovereign (adj.)
- early 14c., "great, superior, supreme," from Old French soverain "highest, supreme, chief," from Vulgar Latin *superanus "chief, principal" (source also of Spanish soberano, Italian soprano), from Latin super "over" (see super-). Spelling influenced by folk-etymology association with reign. Milton spelled it sovran, as though from Italian sovrano. Of remedies or medicines, "potent in a high degree," from late 14c.
Example
- 1. But neither sovereign bankruptcy nor banking bust will be allowed to trigger a crack-up .
- 2. In both 2010 and 2011 europe 's sovereign debt crisis flared up , damaging confidence in america .
- 3. For a sovereign to destroy its own credit , to save creditors of its banks , is plainly wrong .
- 4. Russia objected to this , and more generally to the west imposing a diktat on a sovereign state it considers an ally .
- 5. Faced with that response , a wise sovereign will seek counsel elsewhere .