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n. 1. The act or process of governing, especially the control and administration of public policy in a political unit. 2. The office, function, or authority of a governing individual or body. 3. Exercise of authority in a political unit; rule. 4. The agency or apparatus through which a governing individual or body functions and exercises authority. 5. A governing body or organization, as: a. The ruling political party or coalition of political parties in a parliamentary system. b. The cabinet in a parliamentary system. c. The persons who make up a governing body. 6. A system or policy by which a political unit is governed. 7. Administration or management of an organization, business, or institution. 8. Political science. 9. Grammar The influence of a word over the morphological inflection of another word in a phrase or sentence. gov′ern·mental (-mĕntl) adj. gov′ern·mental·ly adv. Usage Note: In American usage government always takes a singular verb. In British usage government, in the sense of a governing group of officials, takes a plural verb: The government are determined to follow this course. See Usage Note at collective noun. |
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