# government

/ˈɡəvɝmənt/ (US) · /ɡˈʌvənmənt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/government
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. the ruling body

noun · CEFR A2

the group of people who officially control a country or state.

For teachers: the executive and legislative body with the authority to make and enforce laws for a nation or region.

- The government announced new rules for schools this morning.
- The national government is currently debating a series of fiscal reforms intended to stabilise the economy before the next election cycle.

Usage: Often takes a singular verb in American English and a plural verb in British English.

### 2. the system of ruling

noun · CEFR B1

the system or method used to control a country.

For teachers: the system of social control under which the right to make laws is vested in a particular group.

- Many people believe that a democratic government is the best system.
- The transition from a colonial administration to a representative government required significant structural changes to the legal system.

### 3. period of rule

noun · CEFR B2

the time when a specific leader or party is in power.

For teachers: the period of time during which a particular administration or ministry holds office.

- Life in the city changed a lot during the previous government.
- Historians often argue that the government of the 1990s failed to address the underlying causes of the housing crisis.

### 4. grammatical control

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

the way one word in a sentence affects the form of another word.

For teachers: the relationship between a word and its dependents, where one word determines the case or form of another.

- In some languages, the government of a verb determines the case of the noun.
- The professor explained the rules of syntactic government, specifically how certain prepositions require the dative case in German.

Teaching tip: This is a highly specialised linguistic term; students will rarely encounter it outside of advanced grammar or linguistics courses.

## Examples

- The government plans to build a new hospital next year.
- Citizens often vote in elections to choose which political party will form the next government.
- Effective democratic governance requires a transparent government that remains accountable to its electorate through a system of checks and balances.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.