state n often attrib
1 a: a politically organized body of people usu. occupying a definite territory; esp: one that is sovereign
b: the political organization that has supreme civil authority and political power and serves as the basis of government see also compelling state interest at interest 3a, separation of church and state
c: a government or politically organized society having a particular character
a police state
2: the operations or concerns of the government of a country: the sphere of administration and supreme political power of a country (as in international relations)
secrets of state
affairs of state
3 a: one of the constituent units of a nation having a federal government; specif: one of the fifty such units comprising the great part of the U.S. see also state law
b: the territory of a state
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.