Adjacent Words

Reign definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

REIGN, v.i. rane. [L. regno, a derivative of rego, regnum.]
1. To possess or exercise sovereign power or authority; to rule; to exercise government, as a king or emperor; or to hold the supreme power. George the third reigned over Great Britain more than fifty years.
Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness. Isaiah 32.
2. To be predominant; to prevail.
Pestilent diseases which commonly reign in summer or autumn.
3. To rule; to have superior or uncontrolled dominion. Romans 6.
[This word is never applied to the exercise of supreme power by a legislative body or the executive administration, in the United States.]
REIGN, n. rane. [L. regnum.]
1. Royal authority; supreme power; sovereignty.
He who like a father held his reign.
2. The time during which a king, queen or emperor possesses the supreme authority. The Spanish armada was equipped to invade England in the reign of queen Elizabeth. Magna Charta was obtained in the reign of king John.
3. Kingdom; dominion.
Saturn's sons received the threefold reign of heav'n, of ocean, and deep hell beneath.
4. Power; influence.
5. Prevalence.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a period during which something or somebody is dominant or powerful; "he was helpless under the reign of his egotism"
2: the period during which a monarch is sovereign; "during the reign of Henry VIII"
3: royal authority; the dominion of a monarch [syn: reign, sovereignty] v
1: have sovereign power; "Henry VIII reigned for a long time"
2: be larger in number, quantity, power, status or importance; "Money reigns supreme here"; "Hispanics predominate in this neighborhood" [syn: predominate, dominate, rule, reign, prevail]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English regne, from Anglo-French, from Latin regnum, from reg-, rex king — more at royal Date: 13th century 1. a. royal authority ; sovereignty <under the reign of the Stuart kings> b. the dominion, sway, or influence of one resembling a monarch <the reign of the Puritan ministers> 2. the time during which one (as a sovereign) reigns II. intransitive verb Date: 14th century 1. a. to possess or exercise sovereign power ; rule b. to hold office as chief of state although possessing little governing power <in England the sovereign reigns but does not rule> 2. to exercise authority in the manner of a monarch 3. to be predominant or prevalent <chaos reigned in the classroom>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.intr. 1 hold royal office; be king or queen. 2 prevail; hold sway (confusion reigns). 3 (as reigning adj.) (of a winner, champion, etc.) currently holding the title etc. --n. 1 sovereignty, rule. 2 the period during which a sovereign rules. Etymology: ME f. OF reigne kingdom f. L regnare f. rex regis king

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reign Reign (r[=a]n), n. [OE. regne, OF. reigne, regne, F. r[`e]gne, fr. L. regnum, fr. rex, regis, a king, fr. regere to guide, rule. See Regal, Regimen.] 1. Royal authority; supreme power; sovereignty; rule; dominion. He who like a father held his reign. --Pope. Saturn's sons received the threefold reign Of heaven, of ocean, and deep hell beneath. --Prior. 2. The territory or sphere which is reigned over; kingdom; empire; realm; dominion. [Obs.] --Spenser. [God] him bereft the regne that he had. --Chaucer. 3. The time during which a king, queen, or emperor possesses the supreme authority; as, it happened in the reign of Elizabeth.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reign Reign (r?n), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Reigned (r?nd); p. pr. & vb. n. Reigning.] [OE. regnen, reinen, OF. regner, F. r['e]gner, fr. L. regnare, fr. regnum. See Reign, n.] 1. To possess or exercise sovereign power or authority; to exercise government, as a king or emperor;; to hold supreme power; to rule. --Chaucer. We will not have this man to reign over us. --Luke xix. 14. Shall Banquo's issue ever Reign in this kingdom? --Shak. 2. Hence, to be predominant; to prevail. ``Pestilent diseases which commonly reign in summer.'' --Bacon. 3. To have superior or uncontrolled dominion; to rule. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body. --Rom. vi. 12. Syn: To rule; govern; direct; control; prevail.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(reigns, reigning, reigned) 1. If you say, for example, that silence reigns in a place or confusion reigns in a situation, you mean that the place is silent or the situation is confused. (WRITTEN) Confusion reigned about how the debate would end... A relative calm reigned over the city. VERB: V, V over n 2. When a king or queen reigns, he or she rules a country. ...Henry II, who reigned from 1154 to 1189. ...George III, Britain's longest reigning monarch. VERB: V, V-ing • Reign is also a noun. ...Queen Victoria's reign. N-COUNT: with poss 3. If you say that a person reigns in a situation or area, you mean that they are very powerful or successful. Connors reigned as the world No. 1 for 159 consecutive weeks... Coco Chanel reigned over fashion for half a century. VERB: V, V over n • Reign is also a noun. ...a new book celebrating Havergal's reign as artistic director of the Citizens' Theatre. N-COUNT: with poss 4. Someone or something that reigns supreme is the most important or powerful element in a situation or period of time. The bicycle reigned supreme as Britain's most popular mode of transport... PHRASE: V inflects 5. A reign of terror is a period during which there is a lot of violence and killing, especially by people who are in a position of power. The commanders accused him of carrying out a reign of terror. PHRASE

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ran: The Hebrew word malekhuth, may be rendered "kinghood," "royal dignity," "kingdom," "government" ("reign"). The verb is malakh, "to be king" ("to reign as king"), "to become king," "to accede to the throne," "to assume royal power publicly" and, generally speaking, "to become powerful." In the New Testament hegemonia, basileia, basileuein. The word is used, either as a noun or as a verb, of Yahweh (God), the Messiah (Christ) and men (kings, etc.); then of such terms as sin, death, grace; of the woman in Revelation and, conditionally, of the Christians; once, ironically, of the Corinthians. "Reign" as a noun referring to the time of reigning occurs in 1Ki 6:1 (Solomon); 2Ki 24:12 (Nebuchadnezzar); 1Ch 4:31 (David; compare 1Ch 29:30); 2Ch 36:20 ("until the reign of the kingdom of Persia"); Ne 12:22 (Darius); Es 2:16 (Ahasuerus); Lu 3:1 (Tiberius Caesar). More often occurs the verb "to reign," malakh, basileuein. It is applied to:

(1) Yahweh at the close of the song of Moses (Ex 15:18); "Yahweh reigneth" (1Ch 16:31; compare Ps 93:1; 96:10; 99:1; Re 19:6); "God reigneth over the nations" (Ps 47:8); "Yahweh of hosts will reign in mount Zion" (Isa 24:23; compare Mic 4:7); "Thy God reigneth" (Isa 52:7); "Thou hast taken thy great power and didst reign" (Re 11:17, meaning probably "thou didst assume thy might");

(2) the Messiah (Christ) as a just and righteous king (Jer 23:5); an eternal king (Lu 1:33; compare Re 11:15); punishing and subduing His enemies (Lu 19:14,27; 1Co 15:25).

(3) Men (kings, etc.), in regard to the source of their power ("By me (i.e. the wisdom of God), kings reign" (Pr 8:15)); respecting legitimate succession (2Ch 23:3); meaning "to have power or dominion" (Ge 37:8 and Job 34:30); in regard to an essential characteristic (Isa 32:1); in connection with the covenant of Yahweh with David (Jer 33:21); then the word is used in 1Sa 12:12, where Samuel reminds the children of Israel of their demanding a king of him (compare verse 14); of Saul (1Sa 13:1; compare 1Sa 11:12); of Saul's son Ish-bosheth (2Sa 2:10); of David (2Sa 5:4 f; compare 2Sa 3:21); of Adonijah (1Ki 1:11,24; compare 1Ki 2:15); of Solomon (1Ki 1:13); quite frequently of the kings of Judah and Israel (in the Books of Kings and Chronicles); of the kings of Edom (Ge 36:31); of Jabin, king of Canaan, in Razor (Jud 4:2); of Abimelech, Jerubbaal's son, in Jotham's fable (Jud 9:8-15); of Hanun, king of the Ammonites (2Sa 10:1); of Rezon and his men in Damascus (1Ki 11:24); of Hazael and Ben-hadad, kings of Syria (2Ki 8:15, 13:24); of Esar-haddon, king of Assyria (2Ki 19:37); of Ahasuerus, king of Persia (Es 1:1); of Archelaus (Mt 2:22).

(4) In the New Testament the term basileuein, "to reign," is used to illustrate and emphasize the power of sin, death and grace (Ro 5:14,17,21; 6:12). Sin, the vitiating mental factor, is to be looked upon as being constantly and resolutely bent on maintaining or regaining its hold upon man, its power being exercised and reinforced by the lusts of the body. Death, the logical outcome of sin, at once testifies to the power of sin and its inherent corruption, while grace is the restoring spiritual factor following up and combating everywhere and always the pernicious influence of sin. It strives to dethrone sin, and to establish itself in man as the only dominating force.

(5) In describing the future glorious state of the believers, the New Testament uses the expression of those who endure (in faith; compare 2Ti 2:12); of those `purchased unto God with the blood of the Lamb' (Re 5:10); of those partaking in the first resurrection (Re 20:6); of the servants of God, "they shall reign for ever and ever" (Re 22:5); on the other hand, it teaches us not to anticipate the privileges of heaven, while our Christian life is anything but satisfactory (1Co 4:8), and Re 17:18 shows us the terrible fate of the woman, the great city (the corrupt church), "which reigneth over the kings of the earth."

See further KING, KINGDOM.

William Baur

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. n. 1. Rule, be king, exercise sovereign authority. 2. Prevail, be predominant. 3. Rule, govern. II. n. 1. Royalty, sovereignty, royal authority, supreme power, imperial sway. 2. Power, influence, rule, sway, prevalence. 3. Realm, empire, kingdom, dominions.

Moby Thesaurus

administration, ascendancy, authority, averageness, be in, be in force, be the rage, be the rule, be the thing, bear reign, call the shots, charisma, charm, civil government, claws, clout, clutches, command, commonality, commonness, consequence, control, credit, currency, direct, direction, discipline, dispensation, disposition, dominance, dominate, domination, domineer, dominion, effect, eminence, empery, empire, enchantment, esteem, extensiveness, favor, force, form of government, good feeling, govern, governance, government, grip, habitualness, hand, hands, hegemony, hold, importance, incidental power, influence, influentiality, insinuation, iron hand, jurisdiction, kingdom, lead, leadership, leverage, magnetism, manage, management, mastery, moment, monarchy, normality, obtain, ordinariness, overrule, oversight, personality, persuasion, political organization, polity, potency, power, predominance, predominate, preponderance, preponderate, pressure, prestige, prevail, prevalence, purchase, raj, rampantness, regime, regimen, regnancy, regulation, repute, rifeness, routineness, rule, rule over, rule the roost, run, say, sovereignty, standardness, suasion, subtle influence, suggestion, supervise, supervision, supremacy, suzerainty, sway, sweepingness, system of government, talons, upper hand, usualness, wear the crown, weight, whip hand, widespreadness, wield the scepter