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governor

[ guhv-er-ner, ‑uh-ner ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

the executive head of a state in the U.S.
a person charged with the direction or control of an institution, society, etc.:
the governors of a bank; the governor of a prison.
Also called governor general. the representative of the crown, as in the Commonwealth of Nations.
a ruler or chief magistrate appointed to govern a province, town, fort, or the like.
Machinery. a device for maintaining uniform speed regardless of changes of load, as by regulating the supply of fuel or working fluid.
British Informal.
1. one's father.
2. one's employer.
3. any man of superior rank or status.

governor

/ ˈɡʌ��ə��ə /

noun

a person who governs
the ruler or chief magistrate of a colony, province, etc
the representative of the Crown in a British colony
the senior administrator or head of a society, prison, etc
the chief executive of any state in the US
a device that controls the speed of an engine, esp by regulating the supply of fuel, etc, either to limit the maximum speed or to maintain a constant speed
Also calledhead grammar
1. a word in a phrase or clause that is the principal item and gives the function of the whole, as hat in the big red hat
2. ( as modifier )
  a governor noun
informal.
a name or title of respect for a father, employer, etc

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Pronunciation Note

In governor, the process of dissimilation—the tendency for neighboring like sounds to become unlike or for one of them to disappear entirely—commonly results in the loss of the first [r] of [guhv, -er-ner], producing the pronunciation [guhv, -, uh, -ner]. This pronunciation is heard even in regions where postvocalic [r] is not usually dropped. A further loss, of the medial unstressed vowel, results in [guhv, -ner]. All three pronunciations are standard. See colonel, February, library.

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Other Word Forms

��ܲ�·��Ǳ�İ�·�Դǰ� noun
�ܲ�d��·��Ǳ�İ�·�Դǰ� noun

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Word History and Origins

Origin of governor¹

1250–1300; Middle English governour < Old French governeor, gouverneur < Latin ��ܲ��ō��, accusative of ��ܲ��ٴǰ�, equivalent to ��ܲ��(��) to steer, govern + -tor -tor

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Two people were also killed in a Ukrainian strike on the Russian region of Belgorod, the local governor said.

From

By law, Fed governors can only be removed for cause, but it is unclear whether that protection extends to the role leading the board.

From

The governor’s revision to the state budget will be released in mid-May, so at that point, the city will have some idea of whether substantial resources may be coming from the state.

From

He conceded that Democrats running for governor aren’t campaigning in the best of times, or benefiting from a whole lot of goodwill.

From

The Democratic governor of California said he’d been struggling with the issue for some time.

From

governmenty governorate

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