Word of the Day

: February 9, 2014

regnant

play
adjective REG-nunt

What It Means

1 : exercising rule : reigning

2 a : having the chief power : dominant

b : of common or widespread occurrence

regnant in Context

There was increasing pressure on the regnant king to produce an heir.

"As Washington considers how to save the Postal Service, it ought to cast its eyes toward Europe, where mail delivery is one of the few areas where privatization is regnant." - From an article by Troy Senik in the Orange County Register (California), October 17, 2013


Did You Know?

The etymology of "regnant" is fairly straightforward: English speakers borrowed the word sometime around 1600 from Latin. "Regnant" is derived from the Latin verb "regnare," meaning "to reign." "Regnare," in turn, traces back to the noun "regnum," meaning "reign," which derives from "rex," the Latin word for "king." Other descendants of "regnum" include "interregnum" ("a period between two successive reigns or regimes"), "regnal" ("of or relating to a king or his reign"), and even "reign" itself.



Test Your Memory

What is the meaning of "behest," our Word of the Day from January 6? The answer is …


Podcast


More Words of the Day

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!