hold sway
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.64 in modern English
18
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
1
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To have the greatest influence (over someone or something); to be pre-eminent; to dominate.
Example Sentences
- "Within Lololand, of course, no Chinese writ runs, no Chinese magistrate holds sway, and the people, more or less divided among themselves, are under the government of their tribal chiefs."
- "Not only is Jon’s claim to the Iron Throne stronger than hers, thanks to a patriarchal society, but her heroic deeds—and the attendant risks—hold no sway in the North."
- "Neither appeal seemed to hold sway with Kaplan, who stated that while he took into account that Bankman-Fried has autism and is socially awkward, he had committed a very serious crime."
Inflected Forms
holds sway (present, singular)
holding sway (participle, present)
held sway (participle, past)
held sway (past)