dominion
/dəˈmɪnjən
/noun
1 [mass noun] Sovereignty or control: man’s attempt to establish dominion over nature...
- Humans can labour with their hands and brains, can plan and develop productive techniques, and have amassed centuries of culture and knowledge that have enabled them to control and hold dominion over the rest of nature.
- It identifies the restoration of dominion over the powers in the new humanity.
- In truth they are animated by nothing but their own lust for power and their desire for dominion over others.
Synonyms
supremacy, ascendancy, dominance, domination, superiority, predominance, pre-eminence, primacy, hegemony, authority, mastery, control, command, direction, power, sway, rule, government, jurisdiction, sovereignty, suzerainty, lordship, overlordship;
leadership, influence;
the upper hand, the whip hand, the edge, advantage, hold, grasp
archaic empire
rare predomination, paramountcy, prepotence, prepotency, prepollency
1.1 another term for dominium.The conclusion which he arrives at flows from his application of the concept of adverse dominion, and that by dint of adverse dominion, the claimants obtained the right to all of the resources....
- Even more important, however, was the very act of possession: ownership demonstrated dominion.
- In the end neither feudal loyalties, the absolute dominion of property ownership, nor even romance is vindicated.
2 (usually dominions) The territory of a sovereign or government: the Angevin dominions...
- Just as oil and water do not mix, neither do art and life: They are separate and sovereign dominions that coexist without mixing, each with its own idiosyncrasies, values, and morality.
- The union leadership has bolstered this tactic by placing control of their respective territorial dominions ahead of the welfare of the union membership.
- America, he noted, has ‘achieved a degree of power in the contemporary world community which dwarfs the dominions of the empires of the past’.
Synonyms
dependency, colony, protectorate, territory, province, outpost, satellite, satellite state;
holding, possession
historical tributary, fief
archaic demesne
(dominions) realm, kingdom, empire, domain, country, nation, land
2.1 (Dominion) historical Each of the self-governing territories of the British Commonwealth: Great Britain, together with her Dominions and Colonies...
- In 1907, New Zealand was made a Dominion of Great Britain.
- The British North America Act created the Dominion of Canada by 1867.
- Self-governing dominions in the British Empire - such as Canada and after 1947 India - also had one vote each.
3 (dominions) another term for domination (sense 2).From top to bottom, the celestial hierarchy includes seraphim, cherubim, thrones; dominions, virtues, powers; principalities, archangels, and angels.
Origin
Middle English: via Old French from medieval Latin dominio(n-), from Latin dominium, from dominus 'lord, master'.