Plenipotentiary

/ˌplɛn.ɪ.pəʊˈtɛn.ʃəɹ.i/ · noun

Meaning

A person invested with full powers, especially as the diplomatic agent of a sovereign state, (originally) charged with handling a certain matter..

Definitions by Sense

1. A person invested with full powers, especially as the diplomatic agent of a sovereign state, (originally) charged with handling a certain matter.
2. Invested with full power.
3. Of or relating to a plenipotentiary agent

Example Sentences

1937, P. G. Wodehouse, 'Lord Emsworth and Others', Overlook, Woodstock: 2002, p 232. Meeting him in the street and ignoring the foul bowler hat he wore on his walks abroad, you would have put him down as a Bishop in mufti or, at the least, a plenipotentiary at one of the better courts.

None but the like-minded can come plenipotentiary to our court.

Two of them are hanging up there on Golgotha, and that ought to be enough to show the authority of Rome’s ah plenipotentiary.

Near-synonyms: omnicompetent; omnipotent, almighty, all-powerful

It was written of Henry George Ward, M.P. for Sheffield from 1837 to 1849, that "he was also much occupied with railway enterprise in the days of early speculation." This suggests a hard-bitten man of commerce, but Ward had served in the Diplomatic Service and he was Minister Plenipotentiary to Mexico before retiring in 1827 at the age of 30.

Synonyms for plenipotentiary

Antonyms for plenipotentiary

Related Words

Word Forms

• plenipotentiaries

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

Practice and Learn More

Frequently Asked Questions