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Synonyms

House of Representatives

American  

noun

  1. the lower legislative branch in many national and state bicameral governing bodies, as in the United States, Mexico, and Japan. H.R., HR

House of Representatives British  

noun

  1. (in the US) the lower chamber of Congress

  2. (in Australia) the lower chamber of Parliament

  3. the sole chamber of New Zealand's Parliament: formerly the lower chamber

  4. (in the US) the lower chamber in many state legislatures

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
House of Representatives Cultural  

  1. The lower house of the United States Congress. With 435 popularly elected officials, the House (as it is often called) is the most representative body in the federal government. House seats are apportioned (see apportionment) relative to each state's population. Because of its larger size, the House tends to maintain a closer link to local constituent concerns than the Senate, though both houses of Congress participate in virtually all aspects of legislation and policymaking. The Speaker of the House is one of the most influential officials in Washington, D.C., and is second in succession to the presidency, after the vice president.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Phillips, for her part, is on the ballot herself: She is one of the candidates running for a seat in the Tennessee House of Representatives.

From Slate • May 4, 2026

Congressman Steve Scalise, majority leader in the House of Representatives who suffered life-threatening injuries in a shooting at a baseball practice with Republican teammates in 2017, was escorted out by security.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026

“The House of Representatives has an office that provides legal advice and representation to staff, but the Senate doesn’t appear to have such a thing,” Schiff said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 26, 2026

A Democratic lawmaker resigned Tuesday, becoming the third member of the US House of Representatives to step down in just over a week as a wave of ethics scandals engulfs Congress.

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

Politicians who had opposed suffrage in North Carolina urged members of Tennessee’s House of Representatives to fight suffrage “to the last ditch, and then some.”

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.