Dictionary

duumvirate en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /djuːˈʌmvɪɹət/ (UK)

Etymology

From Latin duumvirātus, from duumvir + -ātus. Equivalent to duumvir + -ate (forms nouns denoting rank or office, here the group of people involved with it).

Meanings

1. Synonym of diarchy: rule by two people, especially two men.
   • This was to raise the prospect of a duumvirate – ‘two heads in the same hat’, as Bernis quaintly put it. 2002, Colin Jones, The Great Nation, Penguin, published 2003, page 241:
   • To replace the all-powerful Salan, de Gaulle appointed a duumvirate – Paul Delouvrier and General Maurice Challe. 1977, Alistair Horne, A Savage War of Peace, New York: Review Books, published 2006, page 310:
2. (historical) Any of several offices of the Roman Republic held by two joint magistrates known as duumvirs.

Forms

Relateds

duumvir · duumviral

Synonyms

diarchy

Translations (8)

sv duumvirat (Roman offices) · it duunvirato (Roman offices) · nl duümviraat (Roman offices) · da duumvirat (Roman offices) · pt duunvirato (Roman offices) · de Duumvirat (Roman offices) · fr duumvirat (Roman offices) · nb duumvirat (Roman offices)