quaestor
Americannoun
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one of two subordinates of the consuls serving as public prosecutors in certain criminal cases.
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(later) one of the public magistrates in charge of the state funds, as treasury officers or those attached to the consuls and provincial governors.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of quaestor
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English questor, from Latin quaestor, equivalent to quaes-, base of quaerere “to seek” + -tor noun suffix; see -tor
Vocabulary lists containing quaestor
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.
When he returned from his first political posting, as quaestor in Sicily, for instance, he imagined his fame would have spread far and wide.
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
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The year 68 he spent as quaestor in Farther Spain, and on his return to Rome strenuously advocated the claims of the Transpadane Gauls to the Roman franchise.
From The Student's Companion to Latin Authors by George Middleton
When the city is once more at peace, we'll before the quaestor, and thou and Nolus and Blanca shall all be declared free.
From "Unto Caesar" by Emmuska Orczy, Baroness Orczy
His quaestor was Lucius Cornelius Sulla, scion of a decayed patrician family, who was destined to become the bitter rival of his chief.
From A History of Rome to 565 A. D. by Arthur Edward Romilly Boak
In Sardinia he made the acquaintance of M. Porcius Cato, then quaestor, who induced him to come to Rome B.C.
From The Student's Companion to Latin Authors by George Middleton
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.