(usually initial capital letter) the legislature of Great Britain, historically the assembly of the three estates, now composed of Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal, forming together the House of Lords, and representatives of the counties, cities, boroughs, and universities, forming the House of Commons.
(usually initial capital letter) the legislature of certain British colonies and possessions.
a legislative body in any of various other countries.
French History. any of several high courts of justice in France before 1789.
a meeting or assembly for conference on public or national affairs.
Cards. fan-tan.
an assembly of the representatives of a political nation or people, often the supreme legislative authority
any legislative or deliberative assembly, conference, etc
Also: parlement. (in France before the Revolution) any of several high courts of justice in which royal decrees were registered
the highest legislative authority in Britain, consisting of the House of Commons, which exercises effective power, the House of Lords, and the sovereign
a similar legislature in another country
the two chambers of a Parliament
the lower chamber of a Parliament
any of the assemblies of such a body created by a general election and royal summons and dissolved before the next election
The number of nations governed by parliaments has greatly increased in modern times.
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English: “discourse, consultation, Parliament,” from Anglo-Latin parliamentum, alteration of Medieval Latin parlāmentum, from Old French parlement “a speaking, conference” ( see parle, -ment); replacing Middle English parlement, from Old French
In some countries — Great Britain for example — the group of people who make the laws is called the parliament. It's the equivalent of Congress in the United States. The most common meaning of parliament refers to a country's legislative (law-making) body. England's parliament is very famous. The word comes in part from the French verb parler, which means to speak, which makes sense since this group of people assemble to talk about laws and issues. Another meaning of parliament is the card game known as fan tan or sevens, where you lead with your sevens in a certain sequence and win by using up all your cards.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecomu on Thursday was unveiling the country’s draft budget that he will try to push through a fractured parliament.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
His group and other militias hold top positions in ministries, as well as dozens of seats in Iraq’s parliament where they played a role in Zaidi’s selection in the negotiations that followed last year’s election.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
With 97 seats, Pam does not have a majority and will need to form a coalition to reach the 198 seats required for an absolute majority in the 395-member parliament.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
"Tomorrow morning I will hand over my duties to the parliament speaker."
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
On these occasions, the regent was surrounded by his amapbakathi, a group of councilors of high rank who functioned as the regent’s parliament and judiciary.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
But when the Sami Parliament requested that the government set up a truth commission, it said it expected that a reconciliation process would follow once the commission's work had been completed.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
"I grew up in this area my whole life. It's made me, Camden made me who I am, and to be able to now represent us in Parliament will be such a major thing."
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
However, Parliament voted in 2022 to block juvenile killers from seeking a review if they had been sentenced after they had turned 18.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
The former Trade Union organiser and Nottingham City councillor was first elected to Parliament in 2017.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
I could no more choose to live in such beauty than run for Parliament.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
In 1780, remarkably, Richmond proposed annual parliaments and universal male suffrage, 138 years before the latter would be achieved.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Popes rarely address parliaments, trying to avoid overt political interventions.
From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026
The idea runs back at least to the influential 18th-century English jurist William Blackstone, who instructed that “Acts of parliament derogatory from the power of subsequent parliaments bind not.”
From Slate ● May 26, 2026
Voters in Scotland and Wales will choose who should run their national parliaments, while seats on dozens of councils and mayors are up for election in England.
From BBC ● May 6, 2026
The Haudenosaunee thus would have the second oldest continuously existing representative parliaments on earth.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
