the powers that be
organisations that maintain control over someone or something
TRANSLATION
the powers that be = die Machthaber, die Oberen, die oberen Etagen (DH) --- GOOGLE INDEX the powers that be: approximately 3,200,000 hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Third World activists are using Internet connections to pressure THE POWERS THAT BE and even save lives.
(The New Internationalist)
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"Democracy is the only system that persists in asking THE POWERS THAT BE whether they are the powers that ought to be."
- Sydney J. Harris, American author and journalist
(The New Internationalist)
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"Democracy is the only system that persists in asking THE POWERS THAT BE whether they are the powers that ought to be."
- Sydney J. Harris, American author and journalist
Did you
know?
the powers that be
noun phrase
- important people who have authority over others
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
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WORD ORIGIN
"The powers that be" refers to any group that maintains control or authority over someone or something. It can mean governments (or the people who run them), corporations (or the people who run them), the media or even families (in the case of teenagers, their parents).
The phrase derives from the King James Version of the Bible, although it first appeared in William Tyndale's 16th century translation. It was written in the context of the established political powers: "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: The powers that be are ordained of God." (Romans 13:1)
The phrase frequently has a negative tone and implies that the organisation or person being referred to maintains too much control. Zonker Harris, a figure in the Doonesbury comic strip, has a more light-hearted view:
"Paradise? That's the place where the powers that be and their friends hang out."
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SYNONYMS
the establishment, the Feds, the corridors of power, the power elite, the ruling class, Big Brother, the aristocracy
(DH)
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ANTONYMS
the proletariat, the common people, the working class, the rank and file, the masses
(DH)
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SMUGGLE OWAD INTO TODAY'S CONVERSATION:
"If the powers that be assume the risk of making important decisions for the company, then they should be paid accordingly."
noun phrase
- important people who have authority over others
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
WORD ORIGIN
"The powers that be" refers to any group that maintains control or authority over someone or something. It can mean governments (or the people who run them), corporations (or the people who run them), the media or even families (in the case of teenagers, their parents).
The phrase derives from the King James Version of the Bible, although it first appeared in William Tyndale's 16th century translation. It was written in the context of the established political powers: "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: The powers that be are ordained of God." (Romans 13:1)
The phrase frequently has a negative tone and implies that the organisation or person being referred to maintains too much control. Zonker Harris, a figure in the Doonesbury comic strip, has a more light-hearted view:
"Paradise? That's the place where the powers that be and their friends hang out."
---
SYNONYMS
the establishment, the Feds, the corridors of power, the power elite, the ruling class, Big Brother, the aristocracy
(DH)
---
ANTONYMS
the proletariat, the common people, the working class, the rank and file, the masses
(DH)
---
SMUGGLE OWAD INTO TODAY'S CONVERSATION:
"If the powers that be assume the risk of making important decisions for the company, then they should be paid accordingly."
