Sceptre
name, noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 An ornamental staff held by a ruling monarch as a symbol of power.
"“Divine receptacle of excellence, let it not be deemed impertinent, or deviating from the rules of propriety, if I propound one queſtion which now labours in my breaſt; aſſuring me firſt, you will not let the ſceptre of true judgment depart from your right hand.”"
- 2 a ceremonial or emblematic staff wordnet
- 3 the imperial authority symbolized by a scepter wordnet
- 1 To give a sceptre to.
"To Britain's queen the sceptred suppliant bends."
- 2 To invest with royal power. figuratively
- 1 A hamlet (special service area) in the Rural Municipality of Clinworth, Saskatchewan, Canada.
Example
More examples"They, in the rock reverberant held fast, / moan at the doors. Here, throned aloft, he reigns; / his sceptre calms their rage, their violence restrains: / else earth and sea and all the firmament / the winds together through the void would sweep."
Etymology
From Middle English septre, sceptre, from Old French sceptre, from Latin scēptrum, from Ancient Greek σκῆπτρον (skêptron, “staff, stick, baton”), from σκήπτω (skḗptō, “to prop, to support, to lean upon a staff”).
Related phrases
More for "sceptre"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.