patrician
American Heritage Dictionary:
Top
pa·tri·cian
(pə-trĭsh'ən) 
n.
n.
- A person of refined upbringing, manners, and tastes.
- A member of an aristocracy; an aristocrat.
- A member of one of the noble families of the ancient Roman Republic, which before the third century B.C. had exclusive rights to the Senate and the magistracies.
- Used as a title for members of a class of honorary nobility appointed by the Byzantine emperors.
- A member of the hereditary ruling class in the medieval free cities of Italy and Germany.
[Middle English patricion, from Old French patricien, from Latin patricius, from patrēs (cōnscrīptī), enrolled fathers, senators, pl. of pater, patr-, father.]
patrician pa·tri'cian adj.Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
Top
patrician
In ancient Rome, any member of a group of citizen families who, in contrast to the plebeians, formed a privileged nobility. They attempted to hold on to magistracies, priesthoods, and legal and religious knowledge, and the great civil struggle of the Roman republic was the effort of the plebeians to achieve equality and break the patrician monopoly. Gradually the patricians lost their monopolyexcept in a few areas, such as selected priesthoods and the office of interrexand in the late republic (1st century ) the distinction lost political importance. After 27 , patrician rank was necessary for ascent to the imperial throne. After Constantine's reign ( 337), the term became an honorary title with no particular power.
For more information on patrician, visit Britannica.com.
Roget's Thesaurus:
Top
patrician
adjective
- Of high birth or social position: aristocratic, blue-blooded, elite, highborn, highbred, noble, thoroughbred, upper-class, wellborn. Informal upper-crust. See over/under.
Antonyms by Answers.com:
Top
patrician
adj
Definition: upper-class
Antonyms: common, lower-class
n
Definition: man who is upper-class
Antonyms: commoner
Columbia Encyclopedia:
Top
patrician
patrician (pətrĭsh'ən), member of the privileged class of ancient Rome. Two distinct classes appear to have come into being at the beginning of the republic. Only the patricians held public office, whether civil or religious. From the 4th cent. B.C. the plebeians struggled constantly for political equality until, by the 3d cent. B.C., the only offices reserved to the patricians were the civil office of interrex and some priestly offices. The increasing number of plebs in office together with patricians gave rise to the nobiles, an aristocracy of ruling families of both classes. Caesar and Augustus promoted plebeians to the patrician class. External marks of a patrician were a distinctive tunic and a shoe adorned with an ivory crescent.
Word Tutor:
Top
patrician
IN BRIEF: Of senatorial or noble rank.
Many of the patrician men and women attended the meeting of the parliament.
LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!
Random House Word Menu:
Top
categories related to 'patrician'
- Titles of Rank - patrician: person of high birth; orig. member of one of citizen families of ancient Rome
- Appealing, Elegant, Neat, Rich, or Fancy
See crossword solutions for the clue Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Top
Patrician
 |
Look up patrician in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
Patrician may refer to:
- Patrician (ancient Rome), the original aristocratic families of Ancient Rome, and a synonym for "aristocratic" in modern English usage
- Patrician (post-Roman Europe), the governing elites of cities in parts of medieval and Early Modern Europe
- Patrician (Christianity), the adjective formed from St. Patrick
- Youngstown Patricians, a former semi-professional football team based in Youngstown, Ohio, USA
- Patricians, students and former students of St Patrick's High School, Karachi, Pakistan
- Patricians, students and former students of St. Patrick's Higher Secondary School, Asansol, West Bengal, India
- A member of the Argentine Regiment of Patricians
- The Patrician, an annual publication of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry regiment
Fiction
- Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, a fictional politician in the Discworld book series
- The character Onum Barr in the science fiction Foundation trilogy by Isaac Asimov
- The Patrician (video game), a series of historical trading simulation computer games
See also
 |
This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. |
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Translations:
Top
Patrician
Dansk (Danish)
n. - aristokrat
adj. - aristokratisk
Nederlands (Dutch)
patriciër, aristocraat, voornaam/ aanzienlijk
Français (French)
n. - patricien
adj. - patricien
Deutsch (German)
n. - Patrizier
adj. - patrizisch
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ευπατρίδης, (ιστ.) πατρίκιος
adj. - αριστοκρατικός
Português (Portuguese)
n. - patrício (m), aristocrata
adj. - patrício
Русский (Russian)
патриций, аристократический
Español (Spanish)
n. - patricio
adj. - patricio
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - patricier, ädling
adj. - adlig
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
贵族, 贵族的
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 貴族
adj. - 貴族的
한국어 (Korean)
n. - (고대 로마의) 귀족, 로마 제국의 지방 집정관, 명문가
adj. - 귀족의, 고귀한
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 貴族, 高貴な生まれの人
adj. - 貴族の, 貴族的な
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) شريف روماني, أصيل, ذو أصل عريق (صفه) بطريقي, ينتمي لعائلات
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - אציל רומי, אדם בעל חינוך טוב (צפון-אמריקה), אציל
adj. - אציל, מעודן
If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
American Heritage Dictionary
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.
Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 1994-2012 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
Roget's Thesaurus
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.
Read more
Word Tutor
Copyright © 2004-present by eSpindle Learning, a 501(c) nonprofit organization. All rights reserved.
eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; sign up free. Read more
eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; sign up free. Read more
Random House Word Menu
© 2010 Write Brothers Inc. Word Menu is a registered trademark of the Estate of Stephen Glazier.
Write Brothers Inc.
All rights reserved.
Read more
Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary
Collins Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary © Anne Bradford, 1986, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008
HarperCollins Publishers
All rights reserved.
Read more
Wikipedia on Answers.com
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Patrician.
Read more
