1
as in rules
to exercise authority or power over
the president is elected in order to govern the country, not to follow public opinion polls
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in regulates
to keep from exceeding a desirable degree or level (as of expression)
you need to govern your speech and be able to communicate your outrage without resorting to profanity
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in operates
to look after and make decisions about
the company's finances are governed by its chief financial officer
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of governs
No law or regulation governs what a chair is called, leaving it up to personal preference.
—
Steve Liesman, CNBC, 12 June 2026
Natural light helps regulate your circadian rhythm—aka, your body’s internal clock that governs sleep-wake cycles and the production of hormones like melatonin.
—Allison Forsyth, Health, 9 June 2026
Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA—which governs the world’s most popular sport—is overseeing the most extravagant World Cup in history this summer.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 9 June 2026
That’s in part because a Tennessee federal district judge’s ruling governs that federal district, not other ones.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 9 June 2026
With an October deadline looming for the seven states to agree on a new Colorado River Compact—the plan that governs how water is distributed between them—regional officials are under pressure to strike a compromise on steep water cuts.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 8 June 2026
The department follows California Senate Bill 34, which governs the collection, storage and sharing of license plate reader data.
—Walker Armstrong, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 June 2026
The Lawn Tennis Association, which governs the sport in Britain, awarded the women’s singles wild cards to British players, including Katie Boulter, Francesca Jones, Harriet Dart and Mika Stojsavljevic, as part of its player-development strategy.
—Amelie Claydon, New York Times, 8 June 2026
This diverse base of support may also help explain the mixed system of legal classification that now governs this controversial species.
—The Conversation, 4 June 2026
Steve Liesman, CNBC, 12 June 2026
Natural light helps regulate your circadian rhythm—aka, your body’s internal clock that governs sleep-wake cycles and the production of hormones like melatonin.
—Allison Forsyth, Health, 9 June 2026
Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA—which governs the world’s most popular sport—is overseeing the most extravagant World Cup in history this summer.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 9 June 2026
That’s in part because a Tennessee federal district judge’s ruling governs that federal district, not other ones.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 9 June 2026
With an October deadline looming for the seven states to agree on a new Colorado River Compact—the plan that governs how water is distributed between them—regional officials are under pressure to strike a compromise on steep water cuts.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 8 June 2026
The department follows California Senate Bill 34, which governs the collection, storage and sharing of license plate reader data.
—Walker Armstrong, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 June 2026
The Lawn Tennis Association, which governs the sport in Britain, awarded the women’s singles wild cards to British players, including Katie Boulter, Francesca Jones, Harriet Dart and Mika Stojsavljevic, as part of its player-development strategy.
—Amelie Claydon, New York Times, 8 June 2026
This diverse base of support may also help explain the mixed system of legal classification that now governs this controversial species.
—The Conversation, 4 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for governs
Verb
-
Judge rules Brad Raffensperger doesn’t have to let anyone watch his office compile results on election night.—
Adam Beam,
AJC.com,
15 June 2026
-
For the first time in 53 years, New York rules the NBA.—
Tim Reynolds,
Los Angeles Times,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine engineered the harmless eye-dwelling microbe Corynebacterium mastitidis to secrete interleukin-10 (IL-10), a protein that regulates inflammation and supports wound healing.—
Samantha Agate,
Kansas City Star,
16 June 2026
-
How the Living Eye Drops Work The Pitt team engineered Corynebacterium mastitidis, a benign microbe that already resides under the eyelid, to continuously secrete interleukin-10 (IL-10), a small protein that regulates inflammation.—
Samantha Agate,
Charlotte Observer,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
The company also operates skydiving companies out of Indianapolis and Rock County, Wisconsin.—
Ben Wheeler,
Kansas City Star,
15 June 2026
-
Those economics become even more challenging because publishing still operates on a returns system that dates back to the Great Depression.—
Josh Rivera,
USA Today,
14 June 2026
Verb
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It is widely accepted that a teaspoon of productive soil generally contains between 100 million and one billion bacteria, thus the name and rallying cry of the Forum.—
Louise Schiavone,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
-
The final film contains 82 minutes of score.—
Jon Burlingame,
Variety,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
Milshtein previously served as adviser to COGAT, which supervises civilian policy in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
19 May 2026
-
As chief of patrol, Hein supervises the most visible aspects of the Police Department that define its image in the minds of most Chicagoans, including emergency response, crisis intervention, traffic control, routine patrol and community policing efforts.—
Caroline Kubzansky,
Chicago Tribune,
16 May 2026
Verb
-
Whoever controls those constraints—chips, electricity, grid capacity, and digital infrastructure—will have disproportionate influence over global growth.—
Ken Silverstein,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
-
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and now first-ever trillionaire, controls a lot of different businesses.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
The Commission for Independent Education, a division of the Florida Department of Education that oversees unaccredited colleges like Carleen, voted to close the entire school, which also offered other programs.—
Annie Martin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
17 June 2026
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Progetto 11 also clarifies that Coperni is controlled by two entities, Coperni UK Limited, which holds the license with Tomorrow, and Coperni SAS, a French operating company that oversees day-to-day operations.—
Joe Bobowicz,
Vogue,
17 June 2026
Verb
-
Pace’s pass-rush potential keeps him in the fold, but Flores prefers not to play him on passing downs.—
Alec Lewis,
New York Times,
16 June 2026
-
The microbe lives under the eyelid and keeps producing the anti-inflammatory protein over time.—
Samantha Agate,
Kansas City Star,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Governs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/governs. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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