Representative ˌreprɪˈzentətɪv House Person Noun Elected Government Management

• our elected representatives in government should be doing something about this.
• management are obliged to consult with union representatives about changes to conditions.
• the actor's legal representatives have strongly denied the allegations.
• he was the queen's representative at the ceremony.

representative

1. a person who has been chosen to speak or vote for somebody else or for a group of people, or to take the place of somebody else
• Our elected representatives in government should be doing something about this.
• Management are obliged to consult with union representatives about changes to conditions.
• The actor's legal representatives have strongly denied the allegations.
• He was the Queen's representative at the ceremony.
• a representative of the UN
• The committee includes representatives from industry.

Extra Examples

• We met with representatives from various technology companies.
• I was the sole representative of the committee.
• The association is sending representatives to the conference.
• The country has a new supreme representative body.
• The negotiations were attended by representatives of several states.
• They have recalled their representatives from the negotiations.
• a nursing representative on the infection control committee
• a panel of media representatives
• representatives from citizens' groups
• the Algerian permanent representative at the UN
• the UN special representative for Cyprus
• I was voted student representative for my class.
2. a person who works for a company and travels around selling its products
• a sales representative
• She's our representative in France.

Extra Examples

• a representative for international shipping companies
• his success as a full-time financial representative
• He works as a sales representative for an insurance company.
3. a person who is typical of a particular group
• The singer is regarded as a representative of the youth of her generation.
4. (in the US) a member of the House of Representatives, the Lower House of Congress; a member of the House of Representatives in the lower house of a state parliament

Word Origin

• late Middle English: from Old French representatif, -ive or medieval Latin repraesentativus, from the verb repraesentare ‘exhibit’, from re- (expressing intensive force) + praesentare ‘to present’.