parliamentary

adjective

par·​lia·​men·​ta·​ry ˌpär-lə-ˈmen-t(ə-)rē 

also ˌpärl-yə-

1

a

: of or relating to a parliament

parliamentary elections

parliamentary debate

b

: enacted, done, or ratified by a parliament

a parliamentary grant of money

2

: of or adhering to the parliament as opposed to the king during the English Civil War

… rendered the parliamentary armies … victorious.

—David Hume

3

: of, based on, or having the characteristics of parliamentary government

parliamentary democracy

4

: of or relating to members of a parliament

a parliamentary committee

… have the leader selected by the Parliamentary caucus.

—London Times

5

: of or according to parliamentary law

parliamentary procedure

Examples of parliamentary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Lawmakers in Haiti, for example, have been known to pause parliamentary debates to watch Brazil play. —Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 18 June 2026

The Slovak government is set to face a parliamentary confidence vote Thursday that was triggered by the country’s debt surpassing fiscal limits set by the Constitution. —ABC News, 18 June 2026

Polls opened early in Wigan, part of the parliamentary constituency for the Makerfield by-election. —Alexander Smith, NBC news, 18 June 2026

On Wednesday, Lopez sought to use a parliamentary maneuver to ignore the Public Safety Committee's vote, and reintroduce the measure with tweaks that include much stiffer penalties. —Lauren Victory, CBS News, 17 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin parlamentārius, parliamentārius, from parlamentum, parliamentum parliament + Latin -ārius -ary entry 2

First Known Use

1604, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing parliamentary

• parliamentary government
• parliamentary law

Rhymes for parliamentary

• alimentary
• complimentary
• documentary
• rudimentary
• sedimentary
• supplementary
• testamentary
• integumentary
• uncomplimentary
• unparliamentary
• interparliamentary
• metasedimentary

Kids Definition

parliamentary

adjective

par·​lia·​men·​ta·​ry ˌpär-lə-ˈment-ə-rē 

-ˈmen-trē

also ˌpärl-yə-

1

: of, relating to, or enacted by a parliament

2

: of or relating to government by a cabinet whose members belong to and are responsible to the legislature

3

: of or according to the rules governing the way in which official meetings (as of a parliament or congress) are conducted

parliamentary procedure

Legal Definition

parliamentary

adjective

par·​lia·​men·​ta·​ry ˌpär-lə-ˈmen-tə-rē, ˌpärl-yə- 

1

a

: of or relating to a parliament

b

: enacted, done, or ratified by a parliament

2

: of, based on, or having the characteristics of parliamentary government

3

: of or relating to the members of a parliament

4

: of or according to parliamentary law