plebiscite
American Heritage Dictionary:
Top
pleb·i·scite
(plĕb'ĭ-sīt', -sĭt) 
n.
n.
- A direct vote in which the entire electorate is invited to accept or refuse a proposal: The new constitution was ratified in a plebiscite.
- A vote in which a population exercises the right of national self-determination.
[French plébiscite, from Latin plēbiscītum : plēbis, genitive of plēbs, the people + scītum, decree, from neuter past participle of scīscere, to vote for.]
plebiscitary ple·bis'ci·tar'y (plə-bĭs'ĭ-tĕr'ē, plĕb'ĭ-sĭt'ə-rē) adj.Fowler's Modern English Usage:
Top
plebiscite, referendum
Plebiscite is pronounced pleb-i-sit in British English and usually pleb-i-siyt in American English. The term is most commonly used of a direct vote of a State's electors on a fundamental matter, and is not used with reference to the UK. A referendum is the referral of an important specific issue to the electorate for a general vote, and is used in the UK.
| please, plead, plc, PLC | |
| plectrum, plenteous, plentiful, plenty |
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
Top
plebiscite
Vote by the people of an entire country or district to decide an issue. Voters are asked to accept or reject a given proposal rather than choose between alternative proposals. By means of plebiscites, intermediaries such as political parties can be bypassed. Because plebiscites offer a way to claim a popular mandate without permitting an opposition party, totalitarian regimes have used them to legitimize their power. referendum and initiative.
For more information on plebiscite, visit Britannica.com.
Word Overheard by Answers.com:
Top
plebiscite
Speculation is rife about how the French nation's repudiation of the EU constitution will affect the political fortunes of President Jacques Chirac. Before the vote,
"Mr. Chirac had vowed not to change his government if the referendum failed, saying it was 'neither a plebiscite nor a moment of political change.'"
Either way, the rejection could signal a halt to European expansion and unification.
Link: French Voters Soundly Reject European Union Constitution
Posted May 31, 2005.
See our Word Overheard blog to see interesting uses of strange words. 
Oxford Dictionary of the US Military:
Top
plebiscite
noun the direct vote of all the members of an electorate on an important public question such as a change in the constitution.
See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.
Oxford Dictionary of Politics:
Top
plebiscite
Latin for ‘ordinance of the people’, resurrected by Voltaire to describe the referendum in Switzerland. In the nineteenth century, ‘plebiscite’ was used in English as a derogatory term to describe referendums called by Napoleon I and Napoleon III to boost their personal authority, but the term is no longer regarded as derogatory.
Columbia Encyclopedia:
Top
plebiscite
plebiscite (plĕb'ĭsīt) [Lat.,=popular decree], vote of the people on a question submitted to them, as in a referendum. The term, however, has acquired the more specific meaning of a popular vote concerning changes of sovereignty, as compared to a regularized system of popular voting upon laws and constitutional amendments. This more modern use of the plebiscite arose out of the French Revolution and the French Republic's policy of holding popular votes on the question of French annexation of a territory it had occupied. Many, although not all, of these plebiscites and those held in the following century were manipulated by the occupying power to legitimate an outcome already achieved through military or diplomatic means. The use of the plebiscite reached a high point following World War I, when it was employed extensively in Central and Eastern Europe to determine the boundaries of newly created nation states. Since then, it has been used in settling the status of disputed or border territories, e.g., Saarland (1935) and, most recently, in the process of the decolonization of Africa and Asia, e.g., West New Guinea (1969; see Papua) and Namibia (1989).
Bibliography
See S. Wambaugh, Plebiscites since the World War (1933); L. T. Farley, Plebiscites and Sovereignty (1986).
Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: Politics:
Top
plebiscite
(pleb-uh-seyet, pleb-uh-suht)
A vote of an entire nation or other large political unit on an issue of great importance. A plebiscite is not an election, for there are no candidates. Rather, people vote yes or no on a proposition.
Devil's Dictionary:
Top
plebiscite
A cynical view of the world by Ambrose Bierce
n.
A popular vote to ascertain the will of the sovereign.
Word Tutor:
Top
plebiscite
IN BRIEF: A vote by a population to express an opinion for or against a proposal, especially on a choice of government or ruler.
The plebiscite to determine the status of the annexed area will be on Tuesday.
LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!
Random House Word Menu:
Top
categories related to 'plebiscite'
- Elections and Campaigns - plebiscite: vote in which district or nation expresses yes or no opinion, esp. choice of government or ruler
Translations:
Top
Plebiscite
Dansk (Danish)
n. - folkeafstemning
Nederlands (Dutch)
volksstemming, plebisciet, volksbesluit
Français (French)
n. - plébiscite
Deutsch (German)
n. - Volksabstimmung
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - δημοψήφισμα
Português (Portuguese)
n. - plebiscito (m)
Español (Spanish)
n. - plebiscito, referéndum
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - folkomröstning, referendum
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
公民投票, 平民制定法
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 公民投票, 平民制定法
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) استفتاء عام
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
Oxford Dictionary of the US Military
The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. Copyright © 2001, 2002 by Oxford University Press, Inc. All rights reserved.
Read more
Oxford Dictionary of Politics
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Copyright © 1996, 2003 by Oxford University Press. 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
Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: Politics
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved. 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
Mentioned in
referendum
(Politics)
George II
(King of Greece)
Waldeck
(former principality, district, Germany)
» More