What does sovereign mean?
Definitions for sovereign
ˈsɒv rɪn, ˈsɒv ər ɪn, ˈsʌv-sov·er·eign
This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word sovereign.
Princeton's WordNet
sovereign, crowned head, monarchadjective
a nation's ruler or head of state usually by hereditary right
autonomous, independent, self-governing, sovereignadjective
(of political bodies) not controlled by outside forces
"an autonomous judiciary"; "a sovereign state"
sovereign, supremeadjective
greatest in status or authority or power
"a supreme tribunal"
Wiktionary
sovereignnoun
A monarch; the ruler of a country.
sovereignnoun
One who is not a subject to a ruler or nation.
sovereignnoun
A gold coin minted by the United Kingdom.
sovereignnoun
A very large champagne bottle with the capacity of about 25 liters, equivalent to standard bottles.
sovereignadjective
Exercising power of rule.
sovereign nation
sovereignadjective
Exceptional in quality.
sovereignadjective
Extremely potent or effective (of a medicine, remedy etc.).
sovereignadjective
Having supreme, ultimate power.
Etymology: From soverain, from root *superānus (cf. Italian sovrano, Spanish soberano) from Latin super. Spelling influenced by folk-etymology association with reign.
Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
Sovereignadjective
Etymology: souverain, French; sovrano, Spanish.
As teaching bringeth us to know that God is our supreme truth; so prayer testifieth that we acknowledge him our sovereign good. Richard Hooker.
You, my sovereign lady,
Causeless have laid disgraces on my head. William Shakespeare, Hen. IV.None of us who now thy grace implore,
But held the rank of sovereign queen before,
Till giddy chance, whose malice never bears
That mortal bliss should last for length of years,
Cast us headlong from our high estate. Dryden.Whether Esau, then, were a vassal to Jacob, and Jacob his sovereign prince by birth right, I leave the reader to judge. John Locke.
A memorial of their fidelity and zeal, a sovereign preservative of God’s people from the venomous infection of heresy. Richard Hooker.
The most sovereign prescription in Galen is but empirick; and to this preservative of no better report than a horse-drench. William Shakespeare, Coriolanus.
Love-wounded Protheus,
My bosom, as a bed,
Shall lodge thee, till thy wound be throughly heal’d,
And thus I search it with a sov’reign kiss. William Shakespeare.A water we call water of paradise, by that we do to it, is made very sovereign for health. Francis Bacon.
Like the scum starv’d men did draw
From parboil’d shoes and boots, and all the rest
Which were with any sovereign fatness blest. John Donne.Be cool, my friend, and hear my muse dispense
Some sovereign comforts drawn from common sense. Dryden.Sovereignnoun
Supreme lord.
O, let my sovereign turn away his face,
And bid his ears a little while be deaf. William Shakespeare.By my sovereign, and his fate, I swear,
Renown’d for faith in peace, for force in war,
Oft our alliance other lands desir’d. Dryden.
Wikipedia
Sovereign
Sovereign is a title that can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French souverain, which is ultimately derived from the Latin superānus, meaning 'above'. The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or head of state to head of municipal government or head of a chivalric order. As a result, the word sovereignty has more recently also come to mean independence or autonomy.
ChatGPT
sovereign
A sovereign refers to a supreme ruler or authority, possessing ultimate power and control, usually in the context of a monarch or a head of state in a monarchy. In a broader context, it can also refer to an independent state or nation that has full control over its internal and external affairs. Additionally, it can describe something or someone which exercises authority without interference from outside sources, or possessing supreme or ultimate power.
Webster Dictionary
Sovereignadjective
supreme or highest in power; superior to all others; chief; as, our sovereign prince
Sovereignadjective
independent of, and unlimited by, any other; possessing, or entitled to, original authority or jurisdiction; as, a sovereign state; a sovereign discretion
Sovereignadjective
princely; royal
Sovereignadjective
predominant; greatest; utmost; paramount
Sovereignadjective
efficacious in the highest degree; effectual; controlling; as, a sovereign remedy
Sovereignnoun
the person, body, or state in which independent and supreme authority is vested; especially, in a monarchy, a king, queen, or emperor
Sovereignnoun
a gold coin of Great Britain, on which an effigy of the head of the reigning king or queen is stamped, valued at one pound sterling, or about $4.86
Sovereignnoun
any butterfly of the tribe Nymphalidi, or genus Basilarchia, as the ursula and the viceroy
Etymology: [OE. soverain, sovereyn, OF. soverain, suvrain, F. souverain, LL. superanus, fr. L. superus that is above, upper, higher, fr. super above. See Over, Super, and cf. Soprano. The modern spelling is due to a supposed connection with reign.]
Wikidata
Sovereign
Sovereign is an EP by the Oakland, California band Neurosis. As with the previous album, Times of Grace it was recorded by Steve Albini at Electric Audio in Chicago, Illinois. The CD contains a mixed-media CD-Rom portion featuring visuals and music reminiscent of their live shows and their work under the Tribes of Neurot moniker. In 2011 Neurot Recordings released a reissue that includes bonus track "Misgiven".
Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
Sovereign
suv′rān, or sov′e-rān, adj. supreme: possessing supreme power or dominion: superior to all others: utmost: most efficacious—(Milt.) Sov′ran.—n. a supreme ruler: a monarch: a gold coin=20s.—v.t. to rule over as a sovereign.—adj. Sov′ereignest (Shak.), most effectual.—adv. Sov′ereignly, in a sovereign manner: in the highest degree: supremely.—n. Sov′ereignty, supreme power: dominion. [O. Fr. sovrain—Low L. superanus—L. super, supra, above.]
Suggested Resources
sovereign
Quotes by sovereign -- Explore a large variety of famous quotes made by sovereign on the Quotes.net website.
Etymology and Origins
Sovereign
So called because when first struck, in the reign of Henry VIII., this gold coin had upon it a representation of that sovereign in his royal robes.
Surnames Frequency by Census Records
SOVEREIGN
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Sovereign is ranked #41426 in terms of the most common surnames in America.
The Sovereign surname appeared 525 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Sovereign.
95% or 499 total occurrences were White.
1.3% or 7 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
1.1% or 6 total occurrences were of two or more races.
0.9% or 5 total occurrences were Asian.
Usage in printed sourcesFrom:
- [["1515","4"],["1524","8"],["1563","6"],["1568","1"],["1575","4"],["1579","23"],["1582","41"],["1590","14"],["1592","9"],["1607","21"],["1612","1"],["1620","1"],["1624","1"],["1626","13"],["1635","17"],["1643","9"],["1644","92"],["1645","2"],["1647","12"],["1648","27"],["1649","10"],["1654","2"],["1656","1"],["1657","50"],["1658","16"],["1659","1"],["1660","1"],["1662","6"],["1664","1"],["1665","6"],["1667","2"],["1668","3"],["1669","7"],["1670","3"],["1671","9"],["1675","26"],["1676","4"],["1677","12"],["1679","7"],["1680","60"],["1681","1"],["1682","3"],["1683","34"],["1684","6"],["1685","15"],["1686","8"],["1688","13"],["1689","2"],["1690","8"],["1692","4"],["1693","7"],["1695","9"],["1696","2"],["1697","2"],["1698","11"],["1699","21"],["1700","7"],["1701","15"],["1702","1"],["1703","8"],["1704","24"],["1705","10"],["1706","40"],["1707","11"],["1708","40"],["1709","9"],["1710","34"],["1711","40"],["1712","51"],["1713","13"],["1714","52"],["1715","31"],["1716","98"],["1717","26"],["1718","40"],["1719","18"],["1720","143"],["1721","84"],["1722","186"],["1723","182"],["1724","62"],["1725","62"],["1726","51"],["1727","92"],["1728","201"],["1729","156"],["1730","398"],["1731","182"],["1732","133"],["1733","92"],["1734","91"],["1735","80"],["1736","155"],["1737","247"],["1738","90"],["1739","166"],["1740","184"],["1741","99"],["1742","160"],["1743","189"],["1744","310"],["1745","101"],["1746","182"],["1747","378"],["1748","531"],["1749","268"],["1750","369"],["1751","517"],["1752","1509"],["1753","884"],["1754","876"],["1755","825"],["1756","438"],["1757","603"],["1758","1073"],["1759","1449"],["1760","677"],["1761","1438"],["1762","1025"],["1763","1909"],["1764","1154"],["1765","1074"],["1766","1439"],["1767","1206"],["1768","1575"],["1769","1850"],["1770","1433"],["1771","1413"],["1772","1374"],["1773","1711"],["1774","1350"],["1775","1876"],["1776","1663"],["1777","1765"],["1778","1666"],["1779","1492"],["1780","1144"],["1781","1699"],["1782","1347"],["1783","1656"],["1784","1985"],["1785","1340"],["1786","1824"],["1787","3427"],["1788","3661"],["1789","5255"],["1790","2465"],["1791","2910"],["1792","3913"],["1793","3270"],["1794","3053"],["1795","3343"],["1796","3407"],["1797","4005"],["1798","3131"],["1799","3255"],["1800","5017"],["1801","6487"],["1802","8731"],["1803","8751"],["1804","10358"],["1805","10258"],["1806","8448"],["1807","12125"],["1808","7214"],["1809","8654"],["1810","10512"],["1811","14308"],["1812","12337"],["1813","10730"],["1814","12348"],["1815","10563"],["1816","10278"],["1817","13235"],["1818","15361"],["1819","10808"],["1820","17360"],["1821","14921"],["1822","15943"],["1823","14932"],["1824","17373"],["1825","22996"],["1826","21624"],["1827","21079"],["1828","18375"],["1829","20242"],["1830","22226"],["1831","18785"],["1832","22296"],["1833","16439"],["1834","17979"],["1835","20743"],["1836","22981"],["1837","17398"],["1838","21595"],["1839","26615"],["1840","31122"],["1841","25364"],["1842","18062"],["1843","24248"],["1844","26216"],["1845","26791"],["1846","25916"],["1847","29442"],["1848","24901"],["1849","30227"],["1850","27431"],["1851","31808"],["1852","31114"],["1853","37001"],["1854","43715"],["1855","32031"],["1856","36938"],["1857","29404"],["1858","34739"],["1859","30190"],["1860","29484"],["1861","26723"],["1862","18252"],["1863","22378"],["1864","22460"],["1865","19669"],["1866","30167"],["1867","28192"],["1868","20016"],["1869","24513"],["1870","22787"],["1871","19834"],["1872","22640"],["1873","25372"],["1874","24102"],["1875","29989"],["1876","23797"],["1877","29464"],["1878","22960"],["1879","26716"],["1880","34397"],["1881","30760"],["1882","30485"],["1883","34668"],["1884","35622"],["1885","32348"],["1886","25373"],["1887","28561"],["1888","23496"],["1889","26423"],["1890","26632"],["1891","29115"],["1892","29553"],["1893","29926"],["1894","27236"],["1895","32824"],["1896","33625"],["1897","29215"],["1898","39426"],["1899","40763"],["1900","50305"],["1901","53651"],["1902","42990"],["1903","34825"],["1904","40271"],["1905","36919"],["1906","36985"],["1907","35609"],["1908","34211"],["1909","31570"],["1910","36629"],["1911","30137"],["1912","29515"],["1913","30966"],["1914","28578"],["1915","28714"],["1916","26494"],["1917","24436"],["1918","21416"],["1919","24147"],["1920","31050"],["1921","26640"],["1922","31297"],["1923","19419"],["1924","22257"],["1925","21266"],["1926","20054"],["1927","26226"],["1928","27226"],["1929","25954"],["1930","26386"],["1931","23396"],["1932","19873"],["1933","15768"],["1934","23524"],["1935","22894"],["1936","23394"],["1937","21572"],["1938","21338"],["1939","24760"],["1940","17918"],["1941","16361"],["1942","14480"],["1943","14519"],["1944","14101"],["1945","16830"],["1946","23551"],["1947","23309"],["1948","23880"],["1949","24976"],["1950","26658"],["1951","28293"],["1952","27114"],["1953","24300"],["1954","26840"],["1955","30075"],["1956","27799"],["1957","36062"],["1958","33651"],["1959","32528"],["1960","42336"],["1961","44120"],["1962","48233"],["1963","50132"],["1964","51607"],["1965","58003"],["1966","61745"],["1967","60651"],["1968","68560"],["1969","60824"],["1970","65424"],["1971","59497"],["1972","57129"],["1973","56064"],["1974","49985"],["1975","44257"],["1976","51079"],["1977","45501"],["1978","47814"],["1979","49939"],["1980","44834"],["1981","47214"],["1982","43351"],["1983","48722"],["1984","51205"],["1985","54047"],["1986","61769"],["1987","62033"],["1988","62292"],["1989","63718"],["1990","67799"],["1991","70423"],["1992","78004"],["1993","81150"],["1994","80204"],["1995","87954"],["1996","95514"],["1997","94491"],["1998","100922"],["1999","114075"],["2000","128177"],["2001","125184"],["2002","135210"],["2003","145764"],["2004","172731"],["2005","159960"],["2006","190200"],["2007","216267"],["2008","328223"]]
Numerology
Chaldean Numerology
The numerical value of sovereign in Chaldean Numerology is: 1
Pythagorean Numerology
The numerical value of sovereign in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6
Examples of sovereign in a Sentence
Only complete returns can resolve the questions swirling around his alleged financial obligations and sources of income, such as Russian oligarchs or other sovereign countries.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras:
Our responsibility is for the future of our country. This responsibility obliges us to respond to the ultimatum through the sovereign will of the Greek people.
Being the child of a parent organisation in Europe, all these announcements about cutting back and reduced targets has certainly added concerns about sovereign risk of investing in Australia.
Every country is sovereign and can decide for itself on sanctions. But Germany, France and Britain, the 'EU3', say themselves that Iran poses a threat. Do they want to do business with a threat? if so then all companies chiefs who want this should stand up and say: 'we want to do business with the mullahs'.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi:
( China) respects Afghanistan's sovereign independence and territorial integrity,( and) always insists on non-interference in Afghanistan's internal affairs.
Popularity rank by frequency of use
References
Translations for sovereign
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- سيادةArabic
- батшаBashkir
- sobiràCatalan, Valencian
- panovník, svrchovaný, vládceCzech
- souveränGerman
- κυρίαρχοςGreek
- suvereno, suverenaEsperanto
- soberanoSpanish
- پادشاهPersian
- erinomainen, monarkki, valtias, suvereeni, [[punta, itsenäinen, hallitsijaFinnish
- souverainFrench
- rí, banríon, sabhran, ceannasach, ardcheannasachIrish
- soberana, soberanoGalician
- ard-reeoil, punt airhey, ard-reeManx
- प्रभुHindi
- uralkodóHungarian
- soverano, soveranInterlingua
- berdaulat, penguasaIndonesian
- rejoIdo
- sovranoItalian
- ריבוניHebrew
- 自立, 卓越した, 独立, 君主Japanese
- DeusLatin
- владетел, суверен, соверинMacedonian
- vorst, soevereinDutch
- sobeiranOccitan
- soberano, suseranoPortuguese
- suveranRomanian
- соверен, суверен, властитель, суверенный, монархRussian
- självständig, monark, regent, suveränSwedish
- సర్వసత్తాక, సార్వభౌమTelugu
- egemenTurkish
- сувереномUkrainian
- پربوUrdu
- soveränik, soveranVolapük
- 主權Chinese
Get even more translations for sovereign »
Translation
Find a translation for the sovereign definition in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Word of the Day
Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?
Citation
Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"sovereign." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 19 Jan. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/sovereign>.
Discuss these sovereign definitions with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In