empire

Pluralempires

1. 1
   nouncountable

   A large group of countries or territories under a single supreme ruler or government, especially one ruled by an emperor or empress or built up by conquest.

   The coronation confirmed her as ruler of an empire stretching across the islands.

   For centuries the empire was governed from a single imperial court.

   UsageCapitalized as part of a name: the Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire.

   Note

   Two things can make a state an empire: a ruler with the title of emperor or empress, or growth by conquest. Where the title applies, size hardly matters, so even the Empire of Vietnam, a Japanese client state that lasted only from March to August 1945, carries the name. Capitalized, the word often forms part of a proper name. Elsewhere the word stresses expansion over neighbors rather than who sits on the throne. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

   • The Empire of Vietnam was a Japanese client state that existed from March to August 1945. en.wikipedia.org
2. 2
   big businessnouncountable

   A large and powerful enterprise under the control of a single person or group.

   Over thirty years he assembled a retail empire spanning four countries.

   After the founder's death, control of the empire passed to her three children.

   UsageCommon combinations include a media empire, a business empire, and a fast food empire.

   Similarconglomerate, business, enterprise

   Note

   A political metaphor that has settled into business English. The word keeps a trace of the conqueror, with one ruler at the top of something that keeps expanding. It can flatter a founder, or it can cast a sinister shade, as with Lansky's mob gambling empire spread across the Caribbean. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • Meyer Lansky was an organized-crime figure associated with gambling operations in Cuba and elsewhere in the Caribbean. en.wikipedia.org
3. 3
   overseas coloniesnouncountable

   The group of territories that owe allegiance to a ruling power, considered separately from that power's own native land; its imperial possessions.

   Raw materials shipped from the empire kept the home country's factories running.

   After losing its overseas empire, the country had to rethink its place in the world.

   UsageSay a country lost its empire; with no article, empire is the idea: believe in empire.

   Note

   The word draws a line between a power and what it holds abroad. Britain and its empire are two things, and goods are imported from the empire into the home country, which the possessive "its empire" makes plain. With no article at all it becomes an idea people can hold. The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire (1996), edited by P. J. Marshall, says that British people "continued to believe in empire." Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

   • The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire was first published in 1996. en.wikipedia.org
   • P. J. Marshall edited the book. awm.gov.au
   • The book describes British people as having “continued to believe in empire.” en.wiktionary.org
4. 4
   early 1800s styleadjective

   Alternative letter-case form of Empire: in the neoclassical style of the First French Empire, used of furniture and dress, especially a dress with its waistline just below the bust.

   The designer revived the empire silhouette for her spring collection.

   Many portraits from the era show women in empire dresses with raised waistlines.

   UsageUsually before a noun: an empire waist, an empire dress, empire furniture.

   Note

   In this use it points back to the First French Empire (1804–1814, briefly restored in 1815) and the fashions that imitated it, above all the empire waist set just below the bust. A dated British use also labels goods produced in a dependency of the British Empire. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • The style takes its name from the First French Empire. en.wikipedia.org
   • A dated British use describes goods produced in a dependency of the British Empire. en.wiktionary.org

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