Other forms: representatives
A representative is somebody chosen to speak or act for others. A union representative, elected representatives, a sales representative.
The old argument about the job is Burke's: a representative owes the people their judgement rather than obedience, and betrays them by sacrificing it. As an adjective, representative also means typical of a wider group, which is what a sample must be.
1nounrepresentativeSomebody chosen to speak or act for others.
“Each class chose a representative to speak for them at the school council.”
2adjectivetypicalTypical of a wider group.
“The researchers interviewed a representative group of young people from across the country.”
representative is a delegate.
Medieval Latin repraesentativus comes from repraesentare, to bring before or show, from re- plus praesens, present.
Medieval Latin
repraesentātīvus
Middle French
representatif
Middle English
representative
English, today
representative
From Middle English representative, from Middle French representatif and its etymon Medieval Latin repraesentātīvus. by surface analysis, represent + -ative; See representation. Displaced native Old English spala (“a representative”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA