A republic is a type of government that has no king, queen, or other monarch and where the people are sovereign. This means that people can choose leaders to represent them and make the laws. The word republic comes from the Latin language words res publica, which means "public thing". However, in practice some nominal republics are actually dictatorships, such as the Russian Soviet Republic and the other republics of the USSR from 1922 before it was dissolved in 1991.
Countries with a king or other monarch and free elections is called a constitutional monarchy. This includes the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. What makes a republic different, is that the people do not need the permission of a king, or other higher power, to choose leaders and the type of government they want. Laws are made and enforced in the name of the people. The best known republic in the world is the United States of America.

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