republican

1 of 2

noun

re·​pub·​li·​can ri-ˈpə-bli-kən 

plural republicans

1

Republican plural Republicans

a

: a member of the Republican Party of the U.S. : a member of one of the two major political parties in the U.S. that is usually associated with reduced taxation, with limited government regulation of business, finance, industry, education, and policing, with strong national defense, and with opposition to abortion, affirmative action, gun control, and policies and laws that are viewed as challenging traditional social and family hierarchies and structure

Note: Republicans are associated with conservatism and the political Right (see right entry 2 sense 7a). The Republican Party is frequently referred to as the GOP, which stands for "Grand Old Party."

compare democrat

b

in U.S. history : a member of the Democratic-Republican Party of the U.S.

2

chiefly British

a

: one that favors or supports a republican (see republican entry 2 sense 2a) form of government

For decades, a debate has raged in Britain, pitting republicans, who wish to do away with the royal family, against monarchists and others who support them.

—Mary Pflum

b

Republican plural Republicans : one who favors or supports the joining of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland into a single republic

republican

2 of 2

adjective

1

Republican

a

: of, relating to, or constituting the one of the two major political parties in the U.S. that is usually associated with reduced taxation, with limited government regulation of business, finance, industry, education, and policing, with strong national defense, and with opposition to abortion, affirmative action, gun control, and policies and laws that are viewed as challenging traditional social and family hierarchies and structure

a Republican governor/senator

Republican voters

Republican leadership

members of the Republican Party

b

in U.S. history : democratic-republican

2

a

or less commonly Republican : of or relating to a republic (see republic sense 1a) rather than to a monarchy, tyranny, oligarchy, etc.

especially : organized so that governing power belongs to a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by the leaders and representatives elected by those citizens to govern according to law

The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government …

—U.S. Constitution

… the true source of danger to republican government. Whatever may be tolerated in monarchical and despotic governments, no republic is safe that tolerates a privileged class, or denies to any of its citizens equal rights and equal means to maintain them.

—Frederick Douglass

b

: favoring, supporting, or advocating a form of government in which representatives are elected

He [Thomas Jefferson] had been amazed, on first arriving at New York, to hear, in government circles, so little republican and so much aristocratic sentiment …

—Philip Marsh

"… The republican institutions of our country have produced simpler and happier manners than those which prevail in the great monarchies that surround it. Hence there is less distinction between the several classes of its inhabitants. … A servant in Geneva does not mean the same thing as a servant in France and England. …"

—Mary Shelley

c

Republican chiefly British : favoring or supporting the joining of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland into a single republic

d

dated : belonging or appropriate to one living in or supporting a republic (see republic sense 1)

Horse-RACING is not a republican institution; horse-TROTTING is. Only very rich persons can keep race-horses, and everybody knows they are kept mainly as gambling implements.

—Oliver Wendell Holmes

Synonyms

Adjective

• democratic
• popular
• self-governing
• self-ruling

Examples of republican in a Sentence

Noun

Our state representative is a Republican.

The state's voters are mostly Republicans.

Adjective

the leader of the Republican Party

a small but well-organized republican movement working quietly to overthrow the military dictatorship

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The three-day event touted a roster of big name republicans, including Donald Trump Jr., U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and Trump’s former Chief of Staff, Steve Bannon. —Carmela Guaglianone, Detroit Free Press, 16 June 2024

The political bombers were a diverse bunch: socialist agitators, Russian nihilists, Irish republicans, German saboteurs. —Steven Johnson, New York Times, 17 May 2024

Adjective

The conservative group Heritage Action is launching a new ad campaign in the home states of nine Republican senators to confirm President-elect Trump's nominees. —Sophia Cai, Axios, 11 Dec. 2024

The incoming president’s Cabinet and top administrative choices are dividing his Republican allies and drawing concern, if not full opposition, from Democrats and others. —Lisa Mascaro and Farnoush Amiri, Los Angeles Times, 10 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Adjective

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

Phrases Containing republican

• anti-republican

Kids Definition

republican

1 of 2 adjective

re·​pub·​li·​can ri-ˈpəb-li-kən 

1

a

: of, relating to, or resembling a republic

b

: favoring or supporting a republic

2

capitalized

a

: democratic-republican

b

: of, relating to, or being one of the two major political parties in the U.S.

republican

2 of 2 noun

1

: one that favors or supports a republican form of government

2

capitalized

a

: a member of a political party favoring republicanism

b

: a member of the Democratic-Republican party or of the Republican party of the U.S.

Geographical Definition

Republican

geographical name

river 445 miles (716 kilometers) long in Nebraska and Kansas rising in eastern Colorado and flowing east to unite with the Smoky Hill River forming the Kansas River