# autonomy

> English word · Noun · IPA /ɔːˈtɒn.ə.mi/ · frequency rank #8,756

## Definitions
1. The right or condition of self-government; freedom to act or function independently.
2. A self-governing country or region.
3. The capacity to make an informed, uncoerced decision.
4. The capacity of a system to make a decision about its actions without the involvement of another system or operator.
5. The status of a church whose highest-ranking bishop is appointed by the patriarch of the mother church, but which is self-governing in all other respects. Compare autocephaly.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Ancient Greek αὐτονομῐ́ᾱ (autonomĭ́ā, “freedom to use its own laws, independence”), from αὐτόνομος (autónomos, “living under one's own laws, independent”) + -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā, “-y, -ia”, nominal suffix). By surface analysis, auto- (“self”) + -nomy (“a system of rules or laws about a particular field”).

## Easily confused with
- **astronomy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/astronomy-vs-autonomy)
- **autonomic** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/autonomic-vs-autonomy)

## Common misspellings (11)
`atuonomy`, `auotnomy`, `autnoomy`, `autonmoy`, `autonnomy`, `autonommy`, `autonomyy`, `autonoym`, `autoonmy`, `auttonomy`, `uatonomy`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/autonomy