Meaning of government In English

• 0 the group of people who officially control a country:

  • the government of Israel

  • The government is/are expected to announce its/their tax proposals today.

  • The minister has announced that there will be no change in government policy.

  • Senior government officials will be attending a meeting tomorrow.

  • Theatre companies are very concerned about cuts in government grants to the arts.

  • A government enquiry has been launched.

• 1 the system used for controlling a country, city, or group of people:

  • The 1990s saw a shift to democratic government in Eastern Europe.

  • What this state needs is really strong government.

  • The party that was elected to power has no experience of government.

  • UK The party was in government (= controlled the country) for four years in the 1960s.

• 2 the offices, departments, and groups of people that control a country, state, city, or other political unit:

  • [ U ] She works for the government.

  • [ C ] The new tax law affects the budgets of both state and local governments.

  • [ U ] democratic government

• 3 an organization that officially manages and controls a country or region, creating laws, collecting taxes, providing public services, etc.:

  • The two governments have signed an agreement.

  • This fiscal year would mark the third government surplus in a row for the first time in over 50 years.

  • a federal/central/local/government

  • government official/regulator/employee Global business leaders and government officials gathered in Spain Friday for a meeting aimed at breaking down remaining trade barriers.

  • government agency/department Some government agencies have worked well together to combat terrorist financing.

  • government policy/program/services

  • the Chinese/Italian/British government The Chinese government has implemented economic reforms.

• 4 the people, systems, etc. that manage or control a country or region:

  • The goal is to identify opportunities to reduce the cost of government.

  • a democratic form of government.

  • The President spoke of restoring confidence in government.

• 5 to bring political parties together to make a government when none of them has received a large enough number of votes in an election to control the government:

  • The former prime minister was seeking support from smaller parties to help form a government.

• 6 the government of a particular country, especially the country you are in or the one you have already referred to:

  • The government is proposing changes to subsidies for renewable energy sources.

  • The figures are based on the government's survey of the labor force.