Realm

How to spell realm

5 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce realm

What does realm mean?

1. nounA kingdom or the territory governed by a monarch.
2. nounA sphere of activity, interest, or knowledge.

Realm in a sentence

• The queen ruled her realm for over fifty years.

• These tax questions fall outside my realm of expertise.

• Travellers from across the realm gathered for the coronation.

• Such decisions belong to the realm of senior management.

Where does realm come from?

Language of origin: French

Realm came into English in the early 1300s from Old French reaume or realme, which named a kingdom or the territory under a ruler. Those French forms grew out of Latin regimen, meaning 'a system of rule' or 'government', a noun built on regere, 'to rule or guide straight'. Along the way the spelling was tugged toward the related Latin word regalis, 'royal', which is why an unexpected l crept into the modern English form even though the older spellings often lacked it. The same regere family gives us regal, regent, and regiment, all carrying that core idea of ruling. Over time the word broadened from a literal kingdom to any sphere of activity or knowledge, so today you can speak of the realm of science as easily as the realm of a monarch. The spelling trap is precisely that buried l after the ea, a leftover from the Latin royal connection rather than anything you hear clearly.

How the word is built

• realm (one indivisible root from Old French reaume; the silent letters trace to Latin regalis 'royal')