government (draft)

noun \ ˈgə-vər(n)-mənt \

Definition of government

  1. : the act or process of governing; specifically : authoritative direction or control

  2. obsolete : moral conduct or behavior : discretion

  3. a : the office, authority, or function of governing b obsolete : the term during which a governing official holds office

  4. : the continuous exercise of authority over and the performance of functions for a political unit : rule

  5. a : the organization, machinery, or agency through which a political unit exercises authority and performs functions and which is usually classified according to the distribution of power within it She works for the federal government. b : the complex of political institutions, laws, and customs through which the function of governing is carried out

  6. : the body of persons that constitutes the governing authority of a political unit or organization: such as a : the officials comprising the governing body of a political unit and constituting the organization as an active agency The government was slow to react to the crisis. b capitalized : the executive branch of the U.S. federal government c capitalized : a small group of persons holding simultaneously the principal political executive offices of a nation or other political unit and being responsible for the direction and supervision of public affairs: (1) : such a group in a parliamentary system constituted by the cabinet or by the ministry (2) : administration 4b

  7. : political science studied economics and government

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