imperial

imperial — adjective

1. concerning the authority of an empire, its supreme ruler, or the government that

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

concerning the authority of an empire, its supreme ruler, or the government that controls a wide collection of territories

Example

The imperial palace in Beijing welcomes thousands of tourists every morning.

collocation: imperial palace

Eitan studied the history of Roman imperial government during his first year at university.

Common collocations
  • imperial palace
  • imperial army
  • imperial power
  • imperial capital
  • imperial family
  • imperial treasury
  • imperial government
  • imperial court
Synonyms
  • royal

    refers to a king/queen or monarchy rather than an empire; narrower in scope

  • regal

    describes a dignified, majestic bearing suggestive of royalty, not a political structure

  • sovereign

    describes supreme independent authority; can apply to nations or rulers regardless of imperial status

Antonyms
  • colonial

    relates to territories under imperial rule rather than the ruling power itself

  • provincial

    relates to local or regional matters rather than the central imperial authority

Common Mistakes

The imperial queen visited the hospital to open a new wing.
The royal queen visited the hospital to open a new wing.
'imperial' describes an empire or emperor; use 'royal' for a king or queen in a monarchy.

2. relating to the traditional British way of stating how long, how heavy, or how l

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

relating to the traditional British way of stating how long, how heavy, or how large something is — using inches, feet, miles, ounces, and pints as standard units

Example

Kenji had to convert the baking recipe from imperial units to the metric system.

convert from imperial units

Road signs in the United Kingdom still show distances in imperial miles.

Common collocations
  • imperial units
  • imperial measurements
  • imperial system
  • imperial pint
  • imperial gallon
Synonyms
  • British

    broader term that includes cultural and political meanings; 'imperial' specifically names the measurement system

  • customary

    used for the US version of the imperial system (US customary units), which differs slightly from British imperial units

Antonyms
  • metric

    the decimal-based system used by most countries worldwide

Usage Note

The imperial system is used mainly in the United Kingdom, the United States (with slight differences), and a few other countries. Most of the world uses the metric system (kilometres, litres, grams). Taiwan officially uses the metric system, though some traditional measures remain in daily use.

Common Mistakes

The recipe calls for 200 imperial grams of sugar.
The recipe calls for 7 imperial ounces of sugar.
Grams are units of the metric system, not the imperial system. Imperial weight units include ounces, pounds, and stones.

3. having an unusually large size or an extremely high level of quality that stands

3.adjectiveC2
Definition

having an unusually large size or an extremely high level of quality that stands out from the ordinary

Example

The chef prepared an imperial lobster that weighed nearly two kilograms.

imperial = very large

Trang gave an imperial performance of the Chopin concerto that moved the audience to tears.

imperial = excellent

Common collocations
  • imperial specimen
  • imperial performance
  • imperial size
Synonyms
  • colossal

    focuses on enormous size without the quality or excellence aspect

  • magnificent

    emphasizes beauty and grandeur rather than size

  • superior

    more general term for higher quality; lacks the scale and splendor of 'imperial'

Antonyms
  • tiny

    opposite in terms of size

  • mediocre

    opposite in terms of quality

Usage Note

This sense is quite rare in modern English and mostly appears in formal or literary contexts, especially when describing food, art, or natural specimens of exceptional size.

imperial — noun

Word family

  • empire
    nounB2
  • imperialism
    nounC1
  • imperialist
    nounC1
  • imperialist
    adjectiveC1
  • imperialistic
    adjectiveC2
  • imperially
    adverbC2
  • emperor
    nounB2
  • empress
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Imperial, royal, regal, majestic, and sovereign all describe forms of authority or grandeur, but their focus differs. Imperial relates specifically to an empire — a vast territory ruled by an emperor (e.g., the Roman or British Empire). Royal refers to a king or queen and their monarchy, with no implication of imperial scale. Regal describes a person's dignified, impressive bearing that suggests a monarch — you might say 'her regal posture' even about someone who is not actually royalty. Majestic emphasizes awe-inspiring beauty and splendor rather than political power (e.g., 'a majestic mountain view'). Sovereign describes supreme independent authority — 'a sovereign nation' is self-governing. For example: 'the imperial army marched across provinces' suggests an empire's reach, while 'the royal family waved from the balcony' suggests a kingdom's monarchy, and 'a majestic cathedral rose above the city' describes grandeur without any political authority.

imperial ↗royal ↗regalmajesticsovereign ↗

Common collocations

Adverbs

  • imperially

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

Imperial comes from the Latin adjective 'imperialis,' which derives from 'imperium,' meaning 'command, supreme power, or empire.' The word entered English in the 14th century through Old French, initially describing things related to the Holy Roman Empire, and later expanding to empires worldwide. The noun senses (soldier, emperor, beard, large item) developed over subsequent centuries, with the beard sense named after French Emperor Napoleon III in the 1800s.