Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A chair occupied by an exalted personage, such as a sovereign or bishop, on state or ceremonial occasions, often situated on a dais and sometimes having a canopy and ornate decoration.
- n. A personage who occupies a throne.
- n. The power, dignity, or rank of such a personage; sovereignty.
- n. Christianity The third of the nine orders of angels in medieval angelology.
- v. To install in or occupy a throne.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A chair of state; a seat occupied by a sovereign, bishop, or other exalted personage on occasions of state. The throne is now usually a decorated arm-chair, not necessarily of remarkable richness, and seldom of great size, but usually raised on a dais of one or two steps, and covered with an ornamental canopy. Ancient and Oriental thrones are described and represented as very elaborate, made in part of precious materials, or raised very high with different substructures, and supported on figures of beasts or men.
- n. Sovereign power and dignity: also, the wielder of that power; also, episcopal authority or rank: often with the definite article.
- n. plural The third order of angels in the first triad of the celestial hierarchy. See celestial hierarchy, under hierarchy.
- To set on a throne; enthrone.
- To set as on a throne; set in an exalted position; exalt.
- To sit on a throne; sit in state as a sovereign.
Wiktionary
- n. The ornate seat a king or queen sits on for formal occasions, usually placed on a raised dais in the throne room.
- n. The formal position of a sovereign.
- n. colloquial The lavatory or toilet.
- n. Biblical tradition The third highest order of angel in Christian angelology, ranked above dominions and below cherubim.
- n. music A type of stool used by drummers.
- n. figuratively The leadership.
- v. transitive, archaic To place on a royal seat; to enthrone.
- v. transitive, archaic To place in an elevated position; to give sovereignty or dominion to; to exalt.
- v. intransitive, archaic To be in, or sit upon, a throne; to be placed as if upon a throne.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A chair of state, commonly a royal seat, but sometimes the seat of a prince, bishop, or other high dignitary.
- n. Hence, sovereign power and dignity; also, the one who occupies a throne, or is invested with sovereign authority; an exalted or dignified personage.
- n. A high order of angels in the celestial hierarchy; -- a meaning given by the schoolmen.
- v. To place on a royal seat; to enthrone.
- v. To place in an elevated position; to give sovereignty or dominion to; to exalt.
- v. To be in, or sit upon, a throne; to be placed as if upon a throne.
WordNet 3.0
- n. the chair of state for a monarch, bishop, etc.
- v. put a monarch on the throne
- n. a plumbing fixture for defecation and urination
- v. sit on the throne as a ruler
- n. the position and power of an exalted person (a sovereign or bishop) who is entitled to sit in a chair of state on ceremonial occasions
Etymologies
- Middle English trone, from Old French trone, from Latin thronus, from Ancient Greek θρόνος (thronos, "chair, throne"). Early Modern English spelling modified to conform with Latin and Greek etymology. (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, alteration of trone, from Old French, from Latin thronus, from Greek thronos; see dher- in Indo-European roots. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Today the throne is among 90 objects from the emperor's garden -- buildings, furniture, murals, paintings, jade and cloisonné -- in an exhibit that opened in September at PEM in Salem.”
The Huffington Post: J. Michael Welton: A Tale of Two Architects
“If anyone saw Bill Richardson and James Carville on Larry King last night, well, Bill Richardson said it best when he said that the Clinton's think the throne is theirs and will do anything to take it back because they think they are entitled.”
“One morning, about a week after we had finished up our painting job, Gilberto had something new for us to docleaning out the receptacle bin under what he called the throne room.”
“It is the indestructible kingdom which he calls the throne of David on which the Lord sat.”
“Behind the throne is a place for the noblemens sonns minors to be, to give them opportunity to heare and instruct them in the Laws of England.”
Through England on a Side Saddle in the Time of William and Mary
“Usually the throne is hereditary, but while the succession in some States is in the male line, in others it is in the female, a sister's son being the heir; and there are instances in which the chiefs have elected a sultan or rajah.”
“Saunders!" cried the hearty voice of Captain Truck, who had taken possession of what he called his throne in the cabin.”
“This intimates that he who sits upon the throne is the Mediator of the covenant, that his dominion is for our protection, not our destruction, that he interposes between us and the judgments our sins have deserved, and that all the promises of God are in him yea and amen.”
“For my own part, I adhere to the maxim of antiquity, that the throne is a glorious sepulchre.”
“In elective monarchies, the vacancy of the throne is a moment big with danger and mischief.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘throne’.
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G[r]eek
A collection of words found in English that are either purely Greek or have Greek etymology.
Please add with caution and certainty. Will be regularly updated by me.etymology, philosophy, laconic, disharmony, patriarchic, archaic, phlogiston, aether, aeon, angel, arachnid, rhythm and 346 more...
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Guide to the Perplexed
Lexicon of terms set forth in Maimonides 'Guide to the Perplexed'. A fascinating exercise in theosophy and translation if one substitutes these definitions for a "revised" reading of the Old Testa...
eye, apprehend, associations, air, ruah : or ruhoth,..., affection, attribute, approach, accidents, ascending, articulated, back and 119 more...
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Orwellian Purism
Words and phrases George Orwell criticizes in his essay 'Politics and the English Language'.
ring the changes on, take up the cudge..., toe the line, ride roughshod over, stand shoulder to..., play into the han..., no axe to grind, grist to the mill, fishing in troubl..., on the order of t..., Achilles’ heel, swan song and 162 more...
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RELI - words with Biblical connotations
Words in the Bible evoking biblical stories or with special spiritual meaning. Proper names have been reduced to the minimum.
ark, judgement, holy, saint, baptism, spirit, love, eternal, altar, balsam, covenant, flood and 1115 more...
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MUSIC - ALL TERMS
With focus on non-classical styles, but not excluding terms of the latter.
banjo, accompaniment, acoustic bass, bass guitar, bass clef, ground, brass, cornet, Mute, alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, arrangement and 866 more...
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capitalcreative's Words
deviltry, visceral, cassanova, assuage, genesis, hot minute, osmosis, wistful, sublime, loathe, farfetched, newfangled and 283 more...
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strangelyrouge's Words
glockenspiel, gewgaw, jetsam, flotsam, gripe, grab, wench, whilst, betwixt, hither, thither, yonder and 1034 more...
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Scriptie: The Return of the King
i can't carry it ..., at the end of all..., it's done, reach, eagles, veil, grass, water, cream, strawberries, barley, summer and 200 more...
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Mimi
sober, rhetoric, oratory, ergo, venom, diaphragm, Medieval, piety, incognito, ruse, calamity, evidence and 251 more...
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Just 'cause I like 'em, T
torquate, thalassocracy, toothsome, travois, tempestuous, tone, tincture, tripwire, tether, trill, tenacious, travesty and 355 more...
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merfee's Words
supple, dichotomy, relish, rhapsody, pneumonoultramicr..., embrace, ishmael, ebullient, recalcitrant, elegy, char, lugubrious and 522 more...
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Thomas Crapper would plotz
thunder mug, can buoy, throne, better belly burs..., nothing is so gre..., we are so fond on...
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the castle and its surrounds
labyrinth, throne room, moat, dais, throne, scullery, court, tunnel, vault, mausoleum, crypt, dungeon and 43 more...
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trappings of royalty
various regalia
regalia, crown, crown jewels, tiara, diadem, circlet, coronet, sceptre, robe, ermine, mantle, toga and 20 more...
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Furniture I Never Had
This list was originally titled 'Furniture I Never Had'. I changed it to 'Things I Never Had' because I'm not much interested in furniture anyway :-( There's a whole wider world of not-having out t...
davenport, ottoman, tallboy, rolltop desk, chesterfield, waterbed, chaise longue, bowfat, love seat, electric chair, throne, cathedra and 26 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for throne.

bilby "Since then there had been no farther communication between them, and he had built up within himself a kind of sanctuary in which she throned among his secret thoughts and longings."
- Edith Wharton, 'The Age of Innocence'. Sep 19, 2009
sionnach Thrones also occupy the third level in the hierarchy of angels, below the Seraphim and Cherubim. Depending on who you believe, they look like, well, thrones. That is, unless they appear as a "beryl-coloured wheel-within-a-wheel, their rims covered with hundreds of eyes". Jul 23, 2009
PossibleUnderscore “A throne is only a bench covered with velvet.�?
-Napoleon Bonaparte Jul 23, 2009
brobbins sanctuary, heaven, sublimity Jul 23, 2009