Word.ws English Dictionary

tributary states

tributary states is the plural of tributary state.

Meaning of tributary state

Noun

tributary state (plural tributary states)

  1. (historical) A state that is subject to another and has to pay regular tribute to the latter as a token of submission.
    • The tributary state is the opposite of the garrison state. A garrison state retains its sovereign independence from foreign control or intimidation by jettisoning liberty. By contrast, a tributary state retains the liberties of its citizens by sacrificing sovereign independence.... The tributary...2008, Michael Lind, The American Way of Strategy, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 16

Questions about tributary states

What is tributary states the plural of?
Tributary states is the plural of tributary state.

Words near tributary states in the dictionary

  1. tributariness
  2. tributary
  3. tributary load
  4. tributary loads
  5. tributary state
  6. tributary states
  7. tributaryless
  8. tribute
  9. tribute act
  10. tribute band
  11. tribute bands

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: tributary states (page history and authors); tributary state (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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