praetor

or pre·tor

[ pree-ter ]
/ ˈpri tər /

noun

(in the ancient Roman republic) one of a number of elected magistrates charged chiefly with the administration of civil justice and ranking next below a consul.

Origin of praetor

1375–1425; late Middle English pretor < Latin praetor, for *praeitor leader, literally, one going before, equivalent to *praei-, variant stem of praeīre to go before, lead ( prae- prae- + -i-, base of īre to go) + -tor -tor

OTHER WORDS FROM praetor

prae·to·ri·al [pree-tawr-ee-uh l, -tohr-] /priˈtɔr i əl, -ˈtoʊr-/, adjective

Words nearby praetor

praenomen, praepostor, praesepe, praesidium, praetexta, praetor, praetorian, praetorian guard, praetorianism, praetorius, praetorship

Example sentences from the Web for praetor

British Dictionary definitions for praetor

praetor

pretor

/ (ˈpriːtə, -tɔː) /

noun

(in ancient Rome) any of several senior magistrates ranking just below the consuls

Derived forms of praetor

praetorial or pretorial, adjective praetorship or pretorship, noun

Word Origin for praetor

C15: from Latin: one who leads the way, probably from praeīre, from prae- before + īre to go