rep·re·sen·ta·tive

I

\\ˌre-pri-ˈzen-tə-tiv\\ adjective

 DATE  14th century

1. serving to represent
2.
  a. standing or acting for another especially through delegated authority
  b. of, based on, or constituting a government in which the many are represented by persons chosen from among them usually by election
3. serving as a typical or characteristic example
    a representative moviegoer
4. of or relating to representation or representationalism
• rep·re·sen·ta·tive·ly adverb
• rep·re·sen·ta·tive·ness noun
• rep·re·sen·ta·tiv·i·ty \\-ˌzen-tə-ˈti-və-tē\\ noun

II

noun1. one that represents another or others: as
  a.
    (1) one that represents a constituency as a member of a legislative body
    (2) a member of the house of representatives of the United States Congress or a state legislature
  b. one that represents another as agent, deputy, substitute, or delegate usually being invested with the authority of the principal
  c. one that represents a business organization
  d. one that represents another as successor or heir
2. a typical example of a group, class, or quality : specimen