empire n
1. the domain ruled by an emperor or empress
2. a group of countries under a single authority; "the British empire"
3. a monarchy with an emperor as head of state
4. a group of diverse companies under common ownership and run as a single organization [syn: conglomerate]
5. an eating apple that somewhat resembles a McIntosh; used as both an eating and a cooking apple

Empire \Em"pire\, n. [F., fr. L. imperium a command, sovereignty, dominion, empire, fr. imperare. See Emperor; cf. Imperial.]
1. Supreme power; sovereignty; sway; dominion. ``The empire of the sea.'' --Shak. Over hell extend His empire, and with iron scepter rule. --Milton.
2. The dominion of an emperor; the territory or countries under the jurisdiction and dominion of an emperor (rarely of a king), usually of greater extent than a kingdom, always comprising a variety in the nationality of, or the forms of administration in, constituent and subordinate portions; as, the Austrian empire. Empire carries with it the idea of a vast and complicated government. --C. J. Smith.
3. Any dominion; supreme control; governing influence; rule; sway; as, the empire of mind or of reason. ``Under the empire of facts.'' --M. Arnold. Another force which, in the Middle Ages, shared with chivalry the empire over the minds of men. --A. W. Ward. Celestial empire. See under Celestial. Empire City, a common designation of the city of New York. Empire State, a common designation of the State of New York. Syn: Sway; dominion; rule; control; reign; sovereignty; government; kingdom; realm; state.

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The term empire derives from the Latin imperium (power, authority). Politically, an empire is a geographically extensive group of states and peoples (ethnic groups) united and ruled either by a monarch (emperor, empress) or an oligarchy. Geopolitically, the term empire has denoted very different, territorially-extreme states — at the strong end, the extensive Spanish Empire (16th c.) and the British Empire (19th c.), at the weak end, the Holy Roman Empire (8th c.–19th c.), in its Medieval and early-modern forms.

Etymologically, the political usage of empire denotes a strong, centrally-controlled nation-state, but in the looser vernacular usage, it can denote a large-scale business enterprise (i.e. a transnational corporation) and a political organisation of either national-, regional- or city scale, controlled either by a person (a political boss) or a group authority (political bosses).

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