governour
Middle English
Alternative forms
Etymology
Borrowed from Old French gouvreneur, governeor, from Latin gubernātor; equivalent to governen + -our.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡuvərˈnuːr/, /ˈɡuvərnur/, /ˈɡuvərnər/
Noun
governour (plural gouvernours)
- An administrator or leader; one who heads and/or manages a group of people.
- c. 1395, John Wycliffe, John Purvey [et al.], transl., Bible (Wycliffite Bible (later version), MS Lich 10.), published c. 1410, Epheſianes 6:12, page 77r, column 2; republished as Wycliffe's translation of the New Testament, Lichfield: Bill Endres, 2010:
- foꝛwhi ftryuynge is not to us aȝenes fleiſch ⁊ blood .· but aȝenes þe pꝛincis ⁊ poteſtatis aȝenes gouernours of þe woꝛld of þeſe derkneſſis / aȝens ſpiritual þingis of wickidneſſe, in heuenli thingis
- Because for us, striving isn't [just] against flesh and blood, but against princes and potentates, the rulers of these darknesses' world, and the sources of spiritual wickedness in heavenly places.
- A ruler; one who rules (either supreme or deputy).
- An executive or director; one who is in charge of an institution.
- A general; one who leads a military force on the battlefield.
- One who manages, leads, or supervises a household or mansion.
- Someone who protects, safeguards, or acts as a guardian (used of God or people).
- A helmsman; a person who guides or directs a seafaring vessel.
- (rare) God as the judger of fate and decider of destiny.
- (rare) One who restrains oneself from base urges.
- (physiology, rare) A body part which controls other body parts.
References
- “governǒur, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-11-28.
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