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viceroy

Historical Office
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An imperial official who rules a territory or province on behalf of a monarch, exercising delegated authority; they act as a representative of the crown in a specific region.

Detailed Definition
A viceroy was an official who ruled in the name of a king or emperor, especially in colonial or imperial settings. Here Donne uses the term for Reason, suggesting it should govern the self under God’s authority.
Example
Example in poetry:
“Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend” makes reason a ruler acting for a higher sovereign; Donne’s religious metaphor treats the mind as a kingdom needing governance; “Conscience, my viceroy, kept the turbulent heart” extends the political figure inward; a viceroy historically governed a territory on behalf of a monarch, so the word implies delegated authority
Additional Notes
“Viceroy” is a specialized historical office term that many modern readers may not know from everyday use.; Found in the poem, Batter my heart, three-person'd God by John Donne
Also Known As
governor ruler sovereign
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