representative

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˌrep.rɪˈzen.tə.tɪv/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English representatif,^[2][3] borrowed from Middle French représentatif (early 14th century),^[4][2] or directly from Medieval Latin repraesentātīvus,^[4][2] from repraesentātus, past participle of Latin repraesentāre “to show, exhibit, display”,^[4][2] the source of represent.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Serving to represent, portray or symbolize: 1387–8 in the OED, late Middle English in SOED,^[5][3] the 1580s in Etymonline.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Standing for others, acting as a substitute or agent, is from about 1624, and in the political sense, holding the place of and acting for a larger body of people in a legislature, from 1628.^[5][4] The noun, a member of such a body, as of the House of Commons or the American House of Representatives, is from the 1630s,^[4] and an example or type by the 1640s.^[4] Government founded on the representation of the people is from the 1640s.^[4] Typical of a class is from 1788.^[5] The adverb representatively is from the mid-15th century.^[4]

Timeline

• 1387–8 – serving to represent.^[5]
• c. 1624 – standing for others.^[5]
• 1628 – political representation.^[5][4]
• 1630s – noun, a member of a legislature.^[4]
• 1640s – noun, an example or type.^[4]
• 1788 – typical of a class.^[5]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A person chosen to act or speak for others; a delegate or agent.
2. A member of a legislature, especially of the lower house of the United States Congress or a state legislature.
3. A person who travels to sell a company's goods; a sales representative.
4. A typical example of a class.

Adjective

1. Typical of a class or group: a representative sample.
2. Of or based on government by elected representatives.
3. Serving to represent or portray something.

Word family

• representatively
• representativeness
• representativity
• nonrepresentative
• overrepresentative
• unrepresentative
• sales representative
• House of Representatives

Related words

• represent
• representation
• present

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press