parliament

noun

par·​lia·​ment ˈpär-lə-mənt How to pronounce parliament (audio)
also
ˈpärl-yə- How to pronounce parliament (audio)
1
: a formal conference for the discussion of public affairs
specifically : a council of state in early medieval England
2
a
: an assemblage of the nobility, clergy, and commons called together by the British sovereign as the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom
b
: a similar assemblage in another nation or state
3
a
: the supreme legislative body of a usually major political unit that is a continuing institution comprising a series of individual assemblages
b
: the British House of Commons
4
: one of several principal courts of justice existing in France before the Revolution of 1789

Examples of parliament in a Sentence

The parliament has authority over the armed forces. The issue was debated in Parliament. The law was passed in the present parliament.
Recent Examples on the Web In parliament on Monday, days after returning from the Group of 20 conference in New Delhi, Mr. Trudeau accused the Indian government of killing a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil. Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 20 Sep. 2023 All three politicians are members of parliament representing the ruling Conservative party. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 18 Sep. 2023 Volodymyr Konstantinov, the speaker of Crimea’s parliament, wrote on Telegram that eight auctions had already been concluded, generating around $8.8 million. Tobi Raji, Washington Post, 16 Sep. 2023 Nearly two months later, the court is hearing arguments from eight petitioners against the law, most of them civil society organizations that campaign for good governance, as well as representatives of the government and parliament. Patrick Kingsley, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2023 For example, a popular left-wing German member of parliament, Sahra Wagenknecht, recently compared support for Ukraine to a bottomless pit, while the federal budget is being cut in all other areas. Liana Fix, Foreign Affairs, 12 Sep. 2023 The parliament later called on member states to do the same. Chris Stokel-Walker, WIRED, 11 Sep. 2023 Become a Subscriber The populist Law and Justice party secured a majority in Poland’s parliament, and won the largely ceremonial presidency, in 2015. Yascha Mounk, The Atlantic, 8 Sep. 2023 Another 20,000 were expected to take to the streets on Monday to join a demonstration near the parliament, organizers said. Reuters, NBC News, 4 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'parliament.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English parlement, parliament "discourse, conversation, conference, assembly, assembly of the lay and ecclesiastical aristocracy, the Parliament of England or Ireland," borrowed from Anglo-French, from parler "to speak" + -ment -ment — more at parley entry 2

Note: The Anglo-French word was Latinized as parlamentum or parliamentum by the early 13th century. The source of forms with internal -ia- is uncertain. The Oxford English Dictionary, third edition, compares Latin amerciamentum, merciamentum "discretionary penalty or fine" (beside Anglo-French amercement, mercement; see amerce) and maniamentum "possession, administration" (Anglo-French maniement).

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of parliament was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near parliament

Cite this Entry

“Parliament.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parliament. Accessed 27 Sep. 2023.

Kids Definition

parliament

noun
par·​lia·​ment ˈpär-lə-mənt How to pronounce parliament (audio)
also
ˈpärl-yə- How to pronounce parliament (audio)
: the supreme legislative body of various political units
the British parliament
Etymology

Middle English parliament "a council for discussing government business," from early French parlement (same meaning), from parler "to speak" — related to parley, parlor see Word History at parlor

Legal Definition

parliament

noun
par·​lia·​ment ˈpär-lə-mənt, ˈpärl-yə- How to pronounce parliament (audio)
1
a
: an assemblage of the nobility, clergy, and commons called together by the British sovereign as the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom
b
: a similar assemblage in another nation or state
2
: the supreme legislative body of a usually major political unit that is a continuing institution comprising a series of individual assemblages
Etymology

Anglo-French parlement conference, council, parliament, from parler to speak

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