Standard Lemma guide

self-government

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: S EH1 L F G AH1 V ER0 N M AH0 N T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The governance of a region by its own populace; autonomy.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Examples

  • The radical party agitated for the region to secede from the confederation and establish self-government.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Personal self-control.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: dated, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

government of a political unit by its own people

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: self-determination, self-rule

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: autonomy, liberty

Narrower terms: sovereignty, local option, home rule

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *swé? Proto-Indo-European *selbh-der. Proto-Germanic *selbaz Old English self Old English self- Middle English self- English self- English government English self-government From self- + government.

Across languages

Translations

21 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Danish: selvstyre — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Esperanto: memregado — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Finnish: itsehallinto — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Galician: goberno autónomo — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Georgian: თვითმმართველობა (tvitmmartveloba) — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Greek: αυτοκυβέρνηση (aftokyvérnisi) — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Hindi: स्वराज्य (svarājya) — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Hindi: आत्मशासन (ātmaśāsan) — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Irish: féinrialtas — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Irish: féinrialú — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Irish: féinriail — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Lithuanian: savivalda — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Norman: gouvèrnément dé sé — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Norwegian Bokmål: selvstyre — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Polish: samorząd — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Portuguese: governo autônomo — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Russian: самоуправление (samoupravlenije) — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Spanish: autogobierno — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Swedish: självstyre — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Swedish: autonomi — governance of a region by its own populace
  • Welsh: hunanlywodraeth — governance of a region by its own populace