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  • States-General
    States-General
    noun
    the parliament of the Netherlands, consisting of an upper chamber First Chamber and a lower chamber Second Chamber.
  • States General
    States General
    plural noun
    the bicameral legislature of the Netherlands

States-General

American  
[steyts-jen-er-uhl] / ˈsteɪtsˈdʒɛn ər əl /

noun

  1. the parliament of the Netherlands, consisting of an upper chamber First Chamber and a lower chamber Second Chamber.

  2. French History. the legislative body in France before the French Revolution.


States General British  

plural noun

  1. the bicameral legislature of the Netherlands

  2. history

    1. an assembly of the estates of an entire country in contrast to those of a single province

    2. Also called: Estates General.  the assembly of the estates of all France, last meeting in 1789

    3. the sovereign body of the Dutch republic from the 16th to 18th century

"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

Etymology

Origin of States-General

First recorded in 1575–85

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.

Her Majesty ignored them as her coach rolled past the moat into the medieval Binnenhof, seat of the States-General.

From Time Magazine Archive

A history of the twelve turbulent years from the meeting of the States-General in 1789 through the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte, narrated by Michael Redgrave.

From Time Magazine Archive

On July 11, 1789, La Fayette tried to fill the frame by presenting to the States-General his radical Declaration of the Rights of Man and of Citizens.

From Time Magazine Archive

Poujade promises that at the opportune time, his Deputies will rise up and demand that the National Assembly convoke a modern States-General, with four "estates": shopkeepers and other tradesmen; farmers; employees; the academic class.

From Time Magazine Archive

The legislative body bore the time-honoured title of States-General, and was divided into an Upper Chamber nominated by the king, and a Lower Chamber elected by the people.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 5 "Hinduism" to "Home, Earls of" by Various