I. rep ‧ re ‧ sen ‧ ta ‧ tive 1 /ˌreprɪˈzentətɪv◂/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ representation , ↑ representative ; adjective : ↑ representative ≠ ↑ unrepresentative , ↑ representational ; verb : ↑ represent ]
1 . typical of a particular group or thing
representative of
The latest incident is representative of a wider trend.
2 . including examples of all the different types of something in a group:
The pollsters asked a representative sample of New York residents for their opinions.
3 . a representative system of government allows people to vote for other people to represent them in the government:
a representative democracy
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THESAURUS
▪ typical a typical person or thing is a good example of that type of person or thing:
With his camera around his neck, he looked like a typical tourist.
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The windows are typical of houses built during this period.
▪ classic used to describe a very typical and very good example of something:
It was a classic case of the cure being worse than the disease.
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a classic mistake
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The book is a classic example of great teamwork.
▪ archetypal the archetypal person or thing is the most typical example of that kind of person or thing, and has all their most important qualities:
the archetypal English village
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Indiana Jones is the archetypal adventure hero.
▪ quintessential used when you want to emphasize that someone or something is the very best example of something – used especially when you admire them very much:
the quintessential guide to New York
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Robert Plant is the quintessential rock ‘n’ roll singer.
▪ stereotypical having the characteristics that many people believe a particular type of person or thing has – used when you think these beliefs are not true:
Hollywood films are full of stereotypical images of women as wives and mothers.
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He challenges stereotypical ideas about people with disabilities.
▪ representative containing the most common types of people or things that are found in something, and showing what it is usually like:
a representative sample of college students
▪ characteristic very typical of a particular type of thing, or of someone’s character or usual behaviour:
Each species of bird has its own characteristic song.
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What gives Paris its characteristic charm?
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He played with his characteristic skill.
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the characteristic symptoms of the disease
▪ be the epitome of something to be the best possible example of a particular type of person or thing or of a particular quality:
His house was thought to be the epitome of good taste.
II. representative 2 S3 W2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ representation , ↑ representative ; adjective : ↑ representative ≠ ↑ unrepresentative , ↑ representational ; verb : ↑ represent ]
1 . someone who has been chosen to speak, vote, or make decisions for someone else SYN delegate :
a union representative
representative of
an elected representative of the people
2 . Representative a member of the House of Representatives, the Lower House of Congress in the United States
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THESAURUS
▪ politician someone who works in politics, especially an elected member of the government:
senior politicians
▪ statesman a political or government leader, especially one who is well-respected:
a respected elder statesman
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great statesmen like Roosevelt and Churchill
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He would later describe the king as ‘one of the most brilliant statesmen I have ever been privileged to meet’.
▪ MP/Member of Parliament in Britain, someone who has been elected to a parliament to represent people from a particular area of the country:
Ken Newton, MP
▪ congressman a man who is a member of a congress, especially the US House of Representatives:
a Republican congressman
▪ congresswoman a woman who is a member of a congress, especially the US House of Representatives:
Mrs McKinney was the state’s first black congresswoman.
▪ senator a member of the senate, especially in the US:
Senator Clinton
▪ representative in the US, a member of the House of Representatives:
Democratic Representatives
▪ mayor someone who has been elected to lead the government of a town or city:
Boris Johnson was elected Mayor of London.
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the former New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani
▪ spin doctor someone who is used by a political party to influence people’s opinions by cleverly controlling what is reported in the news:
The party spin doctors would like us to believe that the government is committed to improving the environment.