Adjacent Words

Parliament definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

P`ARLIAMENT, n. Literally, a speaking, conference, mutual discourse or consultation; hence,
1. In Great Britain, the grand assembly of the three estates, the lords spiritual, lords temporal, and the commons; the general council of the nation constituting the legislature, summoned by the king's authority to consult on the affairs of the nation, and to enact and repeal laws. Primarily, the king may be considered as a constituent branch of parliament; but the word is generally used to denote the three estates above named, consisting of two distinct branches, the house of lords and house of commons.
The word parliament was introduced into England under the Norman kings. The supreme council of the nation was called under the Saxon kings, wittenage-mote, the meeting of wise men or sages.
2. The supreme council of Sweden, consisting of four estates; the nobility and representatives of the gentry; the clergy, one of which body is elected from every rural deanery of ten parishes; the burghers, elected by the magistrates and council of every corporation; and the peasants, elected by persons of their own order.
3. In France, before the revolution, a council or court consisting of certain noblemen.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a legislative assembly in certain countries
2: a card game in which you play your sevens and other cards in sequence in the same suit as the sevens; you win if you are the first to use all your cards [syn: fantan, sevens, parliament]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French parlement, from parler Date: 13th century 1. a formal conference for the discussion of public affairs; specifically a council of state in early medieval England 2. a. an assemblage of the nobility, clergy, and commons called together by the British sovereign as the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom b. a similar assemblage in another nation or state 3. a. the supreme legislative body of a usually major political unit that is a continuing institution comprising a series of individual assemblages b. the British House of Commons 4. one of several principal courts of justice existing in France before the Revolution of 1789

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 (Parliament) a (in the UK) the highest legislature, consisting of the Sovereign, the House of Lords, and the House of Commons. b the members of this legislature for a particular period, esp. between one dissolution and the next. 2 a similar legislature in other nations and States. Etymology: ME f. OF parlement speaking (as PARLANCE)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Parliament Par"lia*ment, n. [OE. parlement, F. parlement, fr. parler to speak; cf. LL. parlamentum, parliamentum. See Parley.] 1. A parleying; a discussion; a conference. [Obs.] But first they held their parliament. --Rom. of R. 2. A formal conference on public affairs; a general council; esp., an assembly of representatives of a nation or people having authority to make laws. They made request that it might be lawful for them to summon a parliament of Gauls. --Golding. 3. The assembly of the three estates of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, viz., the lords spiritual, lords temporal, and the representatives of the commons, sitting in the House of Lords and the House of Commons, constituting the legislature, when summoned by the royal authority to consult on the affairs of the nation, and to enact and repeal laws. Note: Thought the sovereign is a constituting branch of Parliament, the word is generally used to denote the three estates named above. 4. In France, before the Revolution of 1789, one of the several principal judicial courts. Parliament heel, the inclination of a ship when made to careen by shifting her cargo or ballast. Parliament hinge (Arch.), a hinge with so great a projection from the wall or frame as to allow a door or shutter to swing back flat against the wall. Long Parliament, Rump Parliament. See under Long, and Rump.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

also Parliament(parliaments) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. The parliament of some countries, for example Britain, is the group of people who make or change its laws, and decide what policies the country should follow. Parliament today approved the policy, but it has not yet become law. N-COUNT; N-PROPER see also Houses of Parliament, Member of Parliament 2. A particular parliament is a particular period of time in which a parliament is doing its work, between two elections or between two periods of holiday. The legislation is expected to be passed in the next parliament. N-COUNT

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

see parliament

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. House of Lords and House of Commons (of Great Britain and Ireland), British legislature.

Moby Thesaurus

Parliament, assembly, bicameral legislature, board of aldermen, chamber of deputies, city board, city council, commission, common council, congress, council, court, diet, federal assembly, general assembly, house of assembly, legislative assembly, legislative body, legislative chamber, legislature, lower chamber, lower house, national assembly, provincial legislature, provincial parliament, representative town meeting, soviet, state assembly, state legislature, town meeting, unicameral legislature, upper chamber, upper house