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Added 9 October 2026

empire

/ˈɛm.paɪ̯ə̯/ noun

In Latin: imperium Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about empire at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The domain ruled by an emperor or empress; the region over which imperial dominion is exercised.
A group of countries under a single authority.
the British created a great empire
A monarchy with an emperor as head of state.

Origin

From Middle English empire, from Old French empire, empere, from Latin imperium, inperium (“command, control, dominion, sovereignty, a dominion, empire”), from imperare, inperare (“to command, order”), from in (“in, on”) + parare (“to make ready, order”). Doublet of empery and imperium.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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