reign
Americannoun
-
reigns
plural
-
the period during which a sovereign occupies the throne.
-
royal rule or authority; sovereignty.
- Synonyms:
- suzerainty, dominion
-
dominating power or influence.
the reign of law.
verb (used without object)
-
reigns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reigned,
past participle, past
-
reigning
present participle
noun
-
the period during which a monarch is the official ruler of a country
-
a period during which a person or thing is dominant, influential, or powerful
the reign of violence is over
verb
-
to exercise the power and authority of a sovereign
-
to be accorded the rank and title of a sovereign without having ruling authority, as in a constitutional monarchy
-
to predominate; prevail
a land where darkness reigns
-
(usually present participle) to be the most recent winner of a competition, contest, etc
the reigning heavyweight champion
Usage
Reign is sometimes wrongly written for rein in certain phrases: he gave full rein (not reign ) to his feelings; it will be necessary to rein in (not reign in ) public spending
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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outreignverb (used with object)
-
interreignverb (used without object)
-
nonreigningadjective
-
unreigningadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
reignsimple
-
reignssimple
-
have reignedperfect
-
has reignedperfect
-
am reigningprogressive
-
are reigningprogressive
-
is reigningprogressive
-
have been reigningperfect progressive
-
has been reigningperfect progressive
Past
-
reignedsimple
-
had reignedperfect
-
was reigningprogressive
-
were reigningprogressive
-
had been reigningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reign
First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English noun reine, regne, from Old French reigne, from Latin regnum “realm, reign,” derivative of reg- (stem of rēx ) “king”; Middle English verb reinen, regnen, from Old French reignier, from Latin regnāre, derivative of regnum
Explanation
Rain falls from above, and people who reign rule from a position above others. They reign over countries and governments, and even over businesses and arts, as in "She used to reign over punk music, always topping the charts." While reign is a verb when it refers to the actions of a person or group of people, the period of time when they reign is also called a reign, as a noun: "His reign over the rodeo circuit ended when he was tackled by a bull named Princess-Maker." Sometimes a stretch of time is called a reign, even without regard to who was the leader, as in a "reign of peace," or a period of time without war and conflict, in a place or government.
Vocabulary lists containing reign
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Toyota Motor is quickly closing the sales gap with General Motors, threatening to end the American auto giant’s nearly 100-year reign atop the U.S. auto market, the Journal’s Sharon Terlep writes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Rain is forecast for much of Thursday and much of Friday, though England's first-day efforts have already given them ample time to begin Root's second reign with victory.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
The title might declare itself concerned with the rivals of Amziah King, but they’re a red herring — this is really about the reign of Kateri.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Walter's purchase, reported in June last year, ended the Buss family's 46-year reign over the NBA giants.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
Although his reign may have begun idealistically, Cahokia quickly became an autocracy; in an Ozymandiac extension of his ego, the supreme leader set in motion the construction projects.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
In an era when divisiveness reigns and everything seems to be designed to keep us at each other’s throats, Byrd makes camaraderie look as simple as it is.
From Salon ● Jul. 10, 2026
"Lots of people are living in fear and uncertainty," one former resident said of the oppressive atmosphere that many now say reigns in the world-renowned experimental city.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
But Katherine LaNasa’s Nurse Dana still reigns supreme and has enough screen time this season where she could have gone lead and possibly won.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
Ahead of the trip, Palace sources said the King could play a unique role in supporting a UK and US partnership that had "survived many presidencies and of course many reigns".
From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026
All glorious reigns have these blank patches, during which the Crown is unpopular.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
With the exception of the liberalizing Alexander II, who reigned from 1855 to 1881, that gives the Romanovs too much credit, but the path was plausible enough.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
And for years, “Sgt. Pepper” reigned supreme, routinely topping “best of” lists as the finest album ever recorded.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
After three hit films and a West End musical that reigned at the Olivier Awards last weekend, a fourth big-screen outing was confirmed at CinemaCon.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Networks like the CW and Freeform reigned then, airing now-classic teen dramas like “Pretty Little Liars” and “The Vampire Diaries.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026
For the next half-century, the concerto reigned supreme, and its godfather, or archangel perhaps, was composer-violinist Arcangelo Corelli.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
They were the world's number one side and reigning world champions.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Sources told BBC Sport the French club wanted to be able to have the same size space as Villa, especially as they are the reigning Super Cup champions after beating Tottenham on penalties last year.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
What was a surprise was the relatively minor amount the Dodgers had to give up to acquire the reigning two-time AL Cy Young Award winner.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
His younger brother is Christian McCaffrey, All-Pro running back for the San Francisco 49ers and reigning comeback player of the year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Charles Kalme, a Latvian-born sixteen-year-old, was a handsome and polite boy who’d spent years in a displaced persons’ camp and was the reigning U.S.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
