adjective
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of, relating to, befitting, or characteristic of a senator
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composed of senators
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electing or entitled to representation by a senator
senatorial districts
Other Word Forms
- nonsenatorial adjective
- senatorially adverb
Etymology
Origin of senatorial
1730–40; < Latin senātōri ( us ) ( senator, -tory 1 ) + -al 1
Explanation
Anything senatorial relates to senators, who are members of a legislative body. If you are a senatorial candidate, guess what? You are running for the Senate. If a politician is presidential, it seems like they could serve as the President. A similar word is senatorial, which refers to all aspects of senators and senates. A senatorial election is between two politicians competing for a seat in the U.S. Senate. A senatorial committee is full of senators. Since a senator is in a position of authority, this word sometimes refers to how impressive, serious, or authoritative someone seems.
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.
Next came Didius Julianus, a senatorial aristocrat who achieved the throne by bribing the guardsmen.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026
Both say that Chairman Cash should have allowed them to exercise their senatorial courtesy to speak outside of public comment and reasonably exceed the two-minute limit.
From Salon • Nov. 17, 2025
Mid-term elections are due in May next year, in which the entire lower house and half of the 24 senatorial seats will be contested.
From BBC • Nov. 28, 2024
If you care about such things, there are loads of senatorial quotes to be mined for meaning.
From Slate • Nov. 15, 2024
“But the Spencers are Egalitarians. They were rallying against your senatorial campaign.”
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
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.
