praetorian
Of or pertaining to a praetorOf or pertaining to a praetor.
/pɹɪˈtɔːɹiən/
Meaning
4 senses(Ancient Rome, not comparable)Of or pertaining to a praetor.
of or relating to a Roman praetor
(Ancient Rome, not comparable)Of or pertaining to the pretorium in an ancient Roman camp.
The praetorian gate was directly in front of the general's tent, and nearest to the enemy.
(Ancient Rome, not comparable)Of or pertaining to the special bodyguard force used by Roman emperors.
praetorian guard
(broadly, not comparable)Corruptly mercenary and venal.
Origin
From Middle English pretorian, from Latin praetōriānus.From Middle English pretorian, from Latin praetōriānus.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Synonyms
3 synonymsClose in meaning
- characteristic of or similar to the corruptible soldiers in the Praetorian Guard with respect to corruption or political venality:Pretorian
- of or relating to a Roman praetor:praetorialpretorianpretorial
Word family
2 related wordsRelatedpraetor
Derivedpraetorianism