governor
UK[ˈɡʌvənə]US[ˈɡʌvərnər]
n
the elected executive head of a state of the us.
n
an official appointed to govern a town or region.
n
a member of a governing body, as of certain institutions.
n
a device that automatically controls the speed of an engine.
Morpheme Breakdown
govern
or
govern
to rule
or
agent suffix
Etymology
the word 'governor' has a journey that begins with the greek 'kybernan', meaning to steer or pilot a ship. this was borrowed into latin as 'gubernare', retaining the nautical sense of steering but expanding metaphorically to mean directing or ruling people. the latin verb passed into old french as 'governer', and then into middle english. the agent suffix '-or', also of latin origin, was attached to form 'governour', denoting one who steers or rules. over time, the literal connection to steering a vessel faded, leaving the abstract political and administrative meanings, while the mechanical sense of a speed-regulating device emerged by analogy in the 18th century.
Analysis
Structure: govern (to rule) + or (agent suffix)
govern (from latin 'gubernare', meaning to steer, to direct, to rule; functional role: root verb). or (from latin agent suffix '-or', meaning a person or thing that performs an action; functional role: derivational suffix forming agent nouns).
Examples
the governor will give a speech on the state's economic plan.
he served as the governor of the bank for a decade.
the engine's governor prevents it from exceeding a safe speed.