senate

noun

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sen·ate | \ ˈse-nət

Definition of senate

1 : an assembly or council usually possessing high deliberative and legislative functions: such as

a : the supreme council of the ancient Roman republic and empire

b : the second chamber in the bicameral legislature of a major political unit (such as a nation, state, or province)

2 : the hall or chamber in which a senate meets

3 : a governing body of some universities charged with maintaining academic standards and regulations and usually composed of the principal or representative members of the faculty

Examples of senate in a Sentence

the New York State Senate The Senate approved the bill. The Senate voted to repeal the tax cut.

Recent Examples on the Web Former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, the Republican nominee, defeated Jones in the Nov. 3 election and is scheduled to assume office in the U.S. senate on Jan. 3, 2021. — al, "Doug Jones gives emotional farewell address to U.S. senate," 9 Dec. 2020 Republican candidate Tommy Tuberville flipped a Democratic senate Senate in Alabama, defeating Doug Jones. — Annalisa Merelli, Quartz, "Who won in the US election so far," 4 Nov. 2020 However, the bill failed to pass in the senate in September last year. — Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz India, "For over 200,000 Indians, the wait for a green card is longer than their lifetimes," 31 Mar. 2020 Error 0: David Gaer, faculty senate president for the LSC University Park campus, presented the idea to the board. — Jamie Swinnerton, Houston Chronicle, "LSC University Park campus to pilot LGBTQA student ally program," 14 Feb. 2020 The bill has survived in the state senate so far, in part with new language that addresses dealers’ fears by reiterating their exclusive rights to sell existing brands in specific geographic areas. — Gabrielle Coppola, Bloomberg.com, "Tesla’s Followers Are Trying to Piggyback Off Elon Musk’s Sales Wins," 6 Feb. 2020 As the Second Amendment protests loomed in Virginia, one Democrat in the state senate scoffed that right-wing groups were getting their members — and their donors — riled up over silly legislative proposals that were unlikely ever to become law. — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, "California’s Crusade against CEOs," 23 Jan. 2020 The renewed violence was a response to the naming of an interim president, Jeanine Áñez, who until Mr Morales’s resignation was the highest-ranking opposition politician in congress as the senate’s second vice-president. — The Economist, "Rainbow resignation Evo Morales leaves Bolivia dangerously divided," 14 Nov. 2019 It was supported by the leaders of the state's Democratic party: Speaker Michael Madigan, senate president John Cullerton and Mayor Rahm Emanuel. — Ben Joravsky, Chicago Reader, "Pritzker, Biss, and Kennedy see the light—just in time for the primary," 2 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'senate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

16 Dec 2020

Cite this Entry

“Senate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/senate. Accessed 28 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for senate

senate

noun

English Language Learners Definition of senate

: the smaller group of the two groups of people who meet to discuss and make the laws of a country, state, etc. especially : the smaller group of the two groups that form the U.S. Congress

: a group of people who govern some colleges and universities

: the group of officials who led the ancient Roman government

See the full definition for senate in the English Language Learners Dictionary

senate

noun

sen·ate | \ ˈse-nət