parliamentary

adjective

par·​lia·​men·​ta·​ry ˌpär-lə-ˈmen-t(ə-)rē How to pronounce parliamentary (audio)
 also  ˌpärl-yə-
1
a
: of or relating to a parliament
parliamentary elections
parliamentary debate
b
: enacted, done, or ratified by a parliament
a parliamentary grant of money
2
: of or adhering to the parliament as opposed to the king during the English Civil War
… rendered the parliamentary armies … victorious.David Hume
3
: of, based on, or having the characteristics of parliamentary government
parliamentary democracy
4
: of or relating to members of a parliament
have the leader selected by the parliamentary caucusLondon Times
5
: of or according to parliamentary law
parliamentary procedure

Examples of parliamentary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The rial's record low came less than a month after a parliamentary election that saw the lowest turnout since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, whose results were dominated by hard-line politicians. Amir Vahdat, Quartz, 24 Mar. 2024 Related article Vigilantes battle gangs in Port-au-Prince as Haiti’s elites vie for power Ruto announced Kenya’s offer to send police to Haiti before seeking the required parliamentary approval, then used his party’s majority in the national assembly to rubberstamp the decision in November. Larry Madowo, CNN, 22 Mar. 2024 Although Erdoğan still won, the left’s campaign gave it new national visibility and its largest parliamentary representation in decades. Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 21 Mar. 2024 The discharge petition, organized by suburban Philadelphia Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, is the latest version of a rarely successful parliamentary technique to force a House vote on a measure that is opposed or otherwise blocked by House leadership. Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 21 Mar. 2024 The presidents in the Czech Republic and Slovakia play a largely symbolic role but have the ability to check parliamentary maneuvers and legislation. Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024 Popova failed to win a seat in parliamentary elections in 2021. Kim Hjelmgaard and Anna Nemtsova, USA TODAY, 15 Mar. 2024 Recommended The liberal-nationalist New People party surprised everyone in the last parliamentary election by hurdling the 5% barrier to gain representation in the Duma. Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Mar. 2024 In March 2023, lawmakers agreed to ban TikTok on mobile devices with access to New Zealand’s parliamentary network. Adam Taylor, Washington Post, 13 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'parliamentary.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin parlamentārius, parliamentārius, from parlamentum, parliamentum parliament + Latin -ārius -ary entry 2

First Known Use

1604, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of parliamentary was in 1604

Dictionary Entries Near parliamentary

Cite this Entry

“Parliamentary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parliamentary. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

parliamentary

adjective
par·​lia·​men·​ta·​ry ˌpär-lə-ˈment-ə-rē How to pronounce parliamentary (audio)
-ˈmen-trē,
 also  ˌpärl-yə-
1
: of, relating to, or enacted by a parliament
2
: of or relating to government by a cabinet whose members belong to and are responsible to the legislature
3
: of or according to the rules governing the way in which official meetings (as of a parliament or congress) are conducted
parliamentary procedure

Legal Definition

parliamentary

adjective
par·​lia·​men·​ta·​ry ˌpär-lə-ˈmen-tə-rē, ˌpärl-yə- How to pronounce parliamentary (audio)
1
a
: of or relating to a parliament
b
: enacted, done, or ratified by a parliament
2
: of, based on, or having the characteristics of parliamentary government
3
: of or relating to the members of a parliament
4
: of or according to parliamentary law
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