An empire is a number of individual nations that are all controlled by the government or ruler of one particular country.
...the Roman Empire.
2. countable noun
You can refer to a group of companies controlled by one person as an empire.
...the big Mondadori publishing empire.
More Synonyms of empire
empire in British English
(ˈɛmpaɪə)
noun
1.
an aggregate of peoples and territories, often of great extent, under the rule of a single person, oligarchy, or sovereign state
2.
any monarchy that for reasons of history, prestige, etc, has an emperor rather than a king as head of state
3.
the period during which a particular empire exists
4.
supreme power; sovereignty
5.
a large industrial organization with many ramifications, esp a multinational corporation
▶ Related adjective: imperial
Word origin
C13: from Old French, from Latin imperium rule, from imperāre to command, from parāre to prepare
Empire in British English
(ˈɛmpaɪə)
noun
the Empire
1. British Empire
2. French history
a.
the period of imperial rule in France from 1804 to 1815 under Napoleon Bonaparte
b. Also called: Second Empire
the period from 1852 to 1870 when Napoleon III ruled as emperor
adjective
3.
denoting, characteristic of, or relating to the British Empire
4.
denoting, characteristic of, or relating to either French Empire, esp the first: inparticular, denoting the neoclassical style of architecture and furniture and the high-waisted style of women's dresses characteristic of the period
empire in American English
(ˈɛmˌpaɪr; for adj., also ɔmˈpiər; oʊmˈpɪr; ɑmˈpiər; ɑmˈpɪr)
noun
1.
supreme rule; absolute power or authority; dominion
2.
a.
government by an emperor or empress
b.
the period during which such government prevails
3.
a.
a group of states or territories under the sovereign power of an emperor or empress
b.
a state uniting many territories and peoples under a single sovereign power
4.
an extensive social or economic organization under the control of a single person, family, or corporation
adjective
5. [E-]
of or characteristic of the first French Empire (1804-15) under Napoleon
, ; specif.,
a.
designating a style of furniture of this period, characterized by massiveness, bronze ornamentation, and motifs of ancient Greece, Rome, and Egypt
b.
designating a gown in the style of the period, with a short waist, décolleté bodice, flowing skirt, and short, puffed sleeves
Word origin
ME & OFr < L imperium < imperare: see emperor
Examples of 'empire' in a sentence
empire
The epics became a battle standard for romantics and for resistance against the British empire around the world.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Why should Americans die to protect the British empire?
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
It took nearly 30 years for European investment banks to build up global empires.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This made her the largest and most varied multinational empire.
Grenville, J. A. S. The Collins History of the World in the 20th Century (1994)
The difficulty is that many shareholders have often struggled to see the benefits of this global empire.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Might he want his empire back one day?
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
This was the history of empire in a nutmeg shell.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
So she was clearly going to be too busy to launch her global skincare empire this year.
The Sun (2011)
History suggests that empires that do not stabilise their periphery end up being destabilised by it.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
But the emperor replied that elsewhere in the empire such groups of firefighters had been responsible for political disturbances.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
This would let him maintain his position as head of the global empire that he built up over four decades.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The behaviour of a watching crowd mattered because it might itself be watched by other crowds across the country andthe empire.
The Times Literary Supplement (2010)
He also served unintentionally as a founding figure in the Byzantine empire that would long survive.
Stearns, Peter N. World History: Patterns of Change and Continuity (1995)
The vacuum left by the end of the Soviet empire must be filled.
Croft, James Corporate Cloak and Dagger (1994)
The Soviet empire was stretched to the limits.
Redwood, John The Global Marketplace (1993)
Other countries that were part of the Soviet empire are keen to establish their own independent currencies.
Redwood, John The Global Marketplace (1993)
The power behind the empire?
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
BRITAIN is just a dot on the world map, no longer the head of an empire.
The Sun (2011)
They had been waiting for thousands of years, waiting as their land and kingdom had been handed off from one conquering empire to another.
Christianity Today (2000)
Britain, meanwhile, has only had one constitutional monarchy and one empire.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Recent editions have included stories from the British Empire period and more recent conflicts.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Yet, as with any empire, its power is in its army.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Worse still, the British family firms were mopped up by multinational drinks empires and became just another brand in their portfolios.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
I got a bit fed up with their sniping at the British Empire all the time.
Patrick Bishop FIGHTER BOYS: Saving Britain 1940 (2003)
A mix of technical ingenuity, entrepreneurial enterprise, maritime supremacy and a growing empire turned the country into the first modern superpower.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
She is in effective control of the family property empire ( one of her brothers also has a senior executive role) and can flex her intellectual muscles.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Quotations
All empire is no more than power in trustJohn DrydenAbsalom and Achitophel
Word lists with
empire
apple, architectural styles, Furniture styles
In other languages
empire
British English: empire /ˈɛmpaɪə/ NOUN
An empire is a group of countries controlled by one powerful country.
...the Roman Empire.
American English: empire
Arabic: اِمْبراطُورِيَّة
Brazilian Portuguese: império
Chinese: 帝国
Croatian: carstvo
Czech: říše
Danish: imperium
Dutch: keizerrijk
European Spanish: imperio
Finnish: valtakunta
French: empire
German: Imperium
Greek: αυτοκρατορία
Italian: impero
Japanese: 帝国
Korean: 제국
Norwegian: imperium
Polish: imperium
European Portuguese: império
Romanian: imperiu
Russian: империя
Latin American Spanish: imperio
Swedish: kejsarrike
Thai: อาณาจักร
Turkish: imparatorluk
Ukrainian: імперія
Vietnamese: đế chế
All related terms of 'empire'
Empire Day
a former holiday celebrated in the British Empire on May 24, Queen Victoria's birthday
Empire State
→ New York State
First Empire
the period of imperial rule in France (1804–14) under Napoleon Bonaparte
Indian Empire
British India and the Indian states under indirect British control, which gained independence as India and Pakistan in 1947
Roman Empire
the territories ruled by ancient Rome . At its height under Trajan , the Roman Empire included W and S Europe, Africa north of the Sahara , and SW Asia . In 395 ad it was divided by Theodosius into the Eastern Roman Empire whose capital was Byzantium and which lasted until 1453, and the Western Roman Empire which lasted until the sack of Rome in 476
Second Empire
the imperial government of France under Napoleon III
British Empire
(formerly) the United Kingdom and the territories under its control, which reached its greatest extent at the end of World War I when it embraced over a quarter of the world's population and more than a quarter of the world's land surface
Chinese Empire
China as ruled by the emperors until the establishment of the republic in 1911–12
Eastern Empire
the eastern of the two empires created by the division of the Roman Empire in 395 ad
empire-builder
a person who seeks extra power for its own sake , esp by increasing the number of his or her subordinates or staff
Ottoman Empire
the former Turkish empire in Europe, Asia, and Africa, which lasted from the late 13th century until the end of World War I
Persian Empire
the S Asian empire established by Cyrus the Great in the 6th century bc and overthrown by Alexander the Great in the 4th century bc . At its height it extended from India to Europe
Russian Empire
the tsarist empire in Asia and E Europe, overthrown by the Russian Revolution of 1917
Turkish Empire
→ Ottoman Empire
Western Empire
the westernmost of the two empires created by the division of the later Roman Empire, esp after its final severance from the Eastern Roman Empire (395 ad )
Byzantine Empire
the continuation of the Roman Empire in the East, esp after the deposition of the last emperor in Rome (476 ad ). It was finally extinguished by the fall of Constantinople , its capital, in 1453
Celestial Empire
→ Chinese Empire
Holy Roman Empire
the complex of European territories under the rule of the Frankish or German king who bore the title of Roman emperor , beginning with the coronation of Charlemagne in 800 ad . The last emperor, Francis II, relinquished his crown in 1806
the Empire State
a nickname for the state of New York
Eastern Roman Empire
the eastern of the two empires created by the division of the Roman Empire in 395 ad
Empire State Building
→ the Empire State Building
Western Roman Empire
the westernmost of the two empires created by the division of the later Roman Empire, esp after its final severance from the Eastern Roman Empire (395 ad )
Central African Empire
a landlocked country of central Africa: joined with Chad as a territory of French Equatorial Africa in 1910; became an independent republic in 1960; a parliamentary monarchy (1976–79); consists of a huge plateau , mostly savanna , with dense forests in the south; drained chiefly by the Shari and Ubangi Rivers . Official languages: French and Sango . Religion: Christian and animist. Currency: franc . Capital: Bangui . Pop: 4 659 080 (2017 est). Area: 622 577 sq km (240 376 sq miles)
United Empire Loyalist
any of the American colonists who settled in Canada during or after the War of American Independence because of loyalty to the British Crown
the Empire State Building
a very high skyscraper in New York City
Russia
the largest country in the world, covering N Eurasia and bordering on the Pacific and Arctic Oceans and the Baltic , Black, and Caspian Seas: originating from the principality of Muscovy in the 17th century, it expanded to become the Russian Empire ; the Tsar was overthrown in 1917 and the Communist Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic was created ; this merged with neighbouring Soviet Republics in 1922 to form the Soviet Union ; on the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991 the Russian Federation was established as an independent state; Russia's annexation of the Ukrainian region of Crimea in 2014 has not been internationally recognized . Official language: Russian. Religion : nonreligious and Russian Orthodox Christian . Currency : rouble . Capital: Moscow . Pop: 143 989 754 (2017 est). Area: 17 074 984 sq km (6 592 658 sq miles)
Chinese translation of 'empire'
empire
(ˈɛmpaɪəʳ)
n(c)
(= group of countries) 帝国(國) (dìguó) (个(個), gè)
(fig, = group of companies) 王国(國) (wángguó)
a business/publishing empire商业(業)/出版王国(國) (shāngyè/chūbǎn wángguó)
1 (noun)
Definition
a group of countries under the rule of a single person or sovereign state
the fall of the Roman empire
Synonyms
kingdom
the Kingdom of Denmark
territory
They deny that any of their territory is under rebel control.
province
the Algarve, Portugal's southernmost province
federation
commonwealth
realm
Defence of the realm is crucial.
domain
the mighty king's domain
imperium (rare)
2 (noun)
Definition
a large industrial organization that is controlled by one person
control of a huge publishing empire
Synonyms
organization
Most of the funds are provided by voluntary organizations.
company
She worked in an insurance company.
business
The company was a family business.
firm
The firm's employees were expecting large bonuses.
concern
If not a large concern, his business was at least a successful one.
corporation
chairperson of a huge multi-national corporation
consortium
syndicate
They formed a syndicate to buy the car.
multinational
conglomeration
3 (noun)
the erroneous belief that man possesses empire over all the creatures in the world
Synonyms
power
women who have reached positions of great power and influence
government
our system of government
control
The first aim of his government would be to establish control over the republic's territory.
rule
the winding-up of British rule over the territory
authority
The judge has no authority to order a second trial.
command
the struggle for command of the air
sovereignty
Concern to protect national sovereignty is far from new.
sway
How can mothers keep daughters under their sway?
supremacy
The president asserted his supremacy over the prime minister.
dominion
They believe they have dominion over us.
mana (New Zealand)
a leader of great mana and influence
related words
related adjectiveimperial
Quotation
All empire is no more than power in trust [John Dryden – Absalom and Achitophel]
Additional synonyms
in the sense of authority
Definition
the power to command, control, or judge others
The judge has no authority to order a second trial.