empire

empire — noun

1. a large set of countries and regions united under the authority of a single powe

1.nountransitive / intransitiveB1
Definition

a large set of countries and regions united under the authority of a single powerful state, monarch, or ruling government, usually gained by military force or settlement

Example

The Roman Empire once stretched from Britain to the Middle East.

proper name: the Roman Empire

By the early 1900s, the British Empire covered almost a quarter of the world's land.

historical reference: British Empire + time period

Common collocations
  • vast empire
  • ancient empire
  • colonial empire
  • empire collapse
  • empire building
Synonyms
  • kingdom

    usually refers to a single country under a monarch, not a multi-territory superstructure

  • realm

    more formal or literary; can refer to any area of rule, not necessarily large

  • dominion

    emphasises sovereignty and control; often used for territories within an empire

Antonyms
  • colony

    a territory controlled by an empire rather than controlling one

Grammar Patterns

the + [name] + Empire

[possessive] + empire

Usage Note

Frequently capitalised when referring to a specific historical empire (the Roman Empire, the British Empire). The name typically precedes the word: the Inca Empire, not the Empire of Inca.

Common Mistakes

The Chinese Empire existed for thousands of years.
The Chinese empire (or imperial China) existed for thousands of years.
Modern historians rarely capitalise 'empire' after a dynastic name unless the entity officially used 'Empire' in its title.

2. a huge group of businesses and commercial activities under the ownership or mana

2.nountransitive / intransitiveB2
Definition

a huge group of businesses and commercial activities under the ownership or management of a single individual, family, or company

Example

Elena built a fashion empire from a single small shop in London.

pattern: [named person] builds + [sector] + empire from [humble start]

The billionaire's business empire includes hotels, airlines, and newspapers.

Common collocations
  • business empire
  • media empire
  • financial empire
  • tech empire
  • build an empire
Synonyms
  • conglomerate

    more technical, refers to a corporation made of many different businesses

  • enterprise

    broader term; less connotation of size or dominance

Grammar Patterns

[possessive] + [adjective] + empire

business empire

media empire

Usage Note

Commonly appears with an industry label: a media empire, a retail empire, a tech empire. The sense is metaphorical — the business does not control countries but dominates its market like an empire dominates territories.

Common Mistakes

She runs an empire restaurant.
She runs a restaurant empire.
The industry comes before 'empire', not after it.

empire — adjective

Word family

  • emperor
    nounB1
  • empress
    nounB2
  • imperial
    adjectiveB2
  • imperialism
    nounC1
  • imperialist
    nounC1
  • imperialist
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Empire, kingdom, realm, and dominion all describe territories under a ruler, but they differ in scope and formality. An empire is the largest — it spans multiple territories or nations under one supreme authority, often acquired through conquest (the Roman Empire, the British Empire). A kingdom is typically a single country ruled by a king or queen (the Kingdom of Sweden). Realm is a more formal or literary term that can describe any kingdom or sphere of influence (the realm of the queen's authority). Dominion is a legal or historical term for a territory that is self-governing but belongs to a larger political entity (Canada was a dominion within the British Empire). In casual usage, realm can also mean a field of activity (the realm of science), while empire is sometimes used metaphorically for business.

empire ↗kingdom ↗realm ↗dominion

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • the fall of the empire
  • the rise of the empire
  • at the height of the empire
  • empire building

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

From Latin 'imperium', meaning 'command, authority, rule, supreme power'. The Latin word was formed from 'imperare' (to command), combining 'in-' (into, upon) + 'parare' (to prepare, order). The word entered English through Old French 'empire' in the 13th century, initially referring to the Holy Roman Empire and later to any large territory under a single ruler. The business-metaphor sense emerged in the late 19th century.