n., pl., -cus·es, or -cus·ses.
- A meeting of the local members of a political party especially to select delegates to a convention or register preferences for candidates running for office.
- A closed meeting of party members within a legislative body to decide on questions of policy or leadership.
- A group within a legislative or decision-making body seeking to represent a specific interest or influence a particular area of policy: a minority caucus.
- Chiefly British. A committee within a political party charged with determining policy.
v., -cused, or -cussed, -cus·ing, or -cus·sing, -cus·es, or -cus·ses. v.intr.
To assemble in or hold a caucus.
v.tr.
To assemble or canvass (members of a caucus).
[After the Caucus Club of Boston (in the 1760s), possibly from Medieval Latin caucus, drinking vessel.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
