adjective 1it is not his best painting but it is the one most representative of his oeuvre as a whole | a representative sample of British society TYPICAL , prototypical, characteristic, illustrative, indicative; archetypal, paradigmatic, exemplary. -opposite(s): ATYPICAL, UNREPRESENTATIVE, ABNORMAL, EXTRAORDINARY.
2Britannia, a female figure allegorically representative of Britain SYMBOLIC , emblematic, evocative.
3a system of representative government | a representative assembly ELECTED , elective, chosen, democratic, popular, nominated, appointed, commissioned; delegated, authorized, accredited, official. -opposite(s): TOTALITARIAN.
noun 1a representative of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society SPOKESPERSON , spokesman, spokeswoman, agent; officer, official; mouthpiece.
2a sales representative COMMERCIAL TRAVELLER , travelling salesman, salesman, saleswoman, agent, traveller; informal rep, knight of the road; N. Amer. informal drummer; Brit. archaic commercial.
3the Cambodian representative at the UN DELEGATE , commissioner, ambassador, attaché, envoy, emissary, chargé, chargé d'affaires, commissary, deputy, aide; Scottish depute; Canadian & Austral. agent general; Roman Catholic Church nuncio; archaic legate, factor.
4our representatives in parliament MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT , MP, Member; councillor; N. Amer. Member of Congress, congressman, congresswoman, senator.
5from the age of thirty, he acted as his father's representative when the raja was away in England DEPUTY , substitute, stand-in, proxy, surrogate.
6fossil representatives of lampreys and hagfishes EXAMPLE , SPECIMEN; exemplar, exemplification, type, archetype, illustration, epitome, embodiment.