dynasty

IPA/ˈdɪnəsti/
KK[dˈaɪnəsti]IPA/ˈdaɪnəsti/

dynasty — noun

  • dynastysingular
  • dynastiesplural

1. a line of kings, queens, or other powerful leaders who all come from one family,

1.nounC1
Definition

a line of kings, queens, or other powerful leaders who all come from one family, or the long stretch of time in which that family holds power over a country.

Example

The Tang dynasty ruled China for almost three hundred years.

the [name] dynasty as subject of a historical statement

Many famous poems were written during the Heian dynasty in Japan.

during the [name] dynasty for time-frame context

Common collocations
  • the Tang/Ming/Qing dynasty
  • found a dynasty
  • the fall of a dynasty
  • the last dynasty
Synonyms
  • house

    older or formal; the House of Tudor, the House of Windsor

  • line

    more general; emphasizes succession rather than the period of rule

  • monarchy

    the system of rule by a king or queen, not the family itself

Grammar Patterns

the [name] dynasty

during the [name] dynasty

Usage Note

Often used with a proper-name modifier naming the family (the Tudor dynasty, the Qing dynasty). Frequently appears as the subject of verbs about rising, ruling, falling, or ending.

Common Mistakes

My family is a dynasty of farmers.
My family has farmed this land for generations.
'dynasty' implies political or royal power, not just family continuity.
The Roberts dynasty owns three restaurants.
The Roberts family owns three restaurants.
use 'dynasty' for rulers of a country, not for business families in everyday speech.

Word family

  • dynastic
    adjectiveC2
  • dynastically
    adverbC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words describe rulers and their families, but each highlights something different. A 'dynasty' is the family itself plus the period when it holds power, and is the usual choice in historical writing about China, Egypt, or medieval Europe. 'House' is more formal and refers chiefly to the family name (the House of Windsor, the House of Bourbon); it does not strongly imply a time span. 'Line' stresses the chain of succession from parent to child (a royal line, the line of David) without commenting on whether the family ruled long or briefly. 'Monarchy' names the system of one-person rule, not the family running it, so we say 'the British monarchy' to mean the institution, but 'the Tudor dynasty' to mean the specific Tudor kings and queens.

dynasty ↗house ↗line ↗monarchy ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • dynasty founder
  • dynasty rule
  • the end of a dynasty

Phrases

  • found a dynasty
  • the fall of a dynasty
  • establish a dynasty

Prepositions

  • under (the) dynasty
  • during the dynasty
  • of a dynasty

Etymology

GreekLate LatinOld FrenchEnglish

From Greek 'dunasteia', meaning power or lordship, built on 'dunastes' (a ruler) and ultimately on 'dunasthai' (to be able, to have power). The word traveled through Late Latin into French and entered English in the fifteenth century, first used in church and historical writing about ancient Egypt and Rome, then broadened to any line of rulers from one family.