HOW TO PRONOUNCE
sovereign
/ˈsɑv(ə)ɹɪn/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:41
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What does sovereign mean?
adjective
- Exercising power of rule.
- Having supreme, ultimate power; (often specifically, of a polity) having fully independent power in international relations.
- Exceptional in quality.
More meanings (15)
adjective
- Princely; royal.
- Predominant; greatest; utmost; paramount.
- (archaic) Extremely potent or effective (of a medicine, remedy etc.).
noun
- A monarch: a supreme ruler of a country in a monarchical system.
- One who is not a subject to a ruler or nation.
- Ellipsis of sovereign citizen.
- 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.
- (slang) A large, garish ring; a sovereign ring.
- The title of a monarch.
- God, the supreme being who has power over all creation.
verb
- To rule over as a sovereign.
proper noun
- A surname from German.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/ˈsɑv(ə)ɹɪn/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
This youthful parcel Of noble bachelors stand at my bestowing, O’er whom both sovereign power and father’s voice I have to use.
The nation, so long a victim of monarchical selfishness, thought to deliver itself for ever by declaring that it alone was sovereign.
More book examples (3)
I had taken eight sovereigns on setting out from London to Liverpool by coach, and I brought one sovereign back with me.
Not an arm is raised in defence of the Archduke, and the rebels, at length, encamp before Vienna to besiege their sovereign.
The sovereign had neither naval arsenals nor dockyards, nor any regular establishment of civil or naval affairs to provide ships of war.