Meaning & use
electorate
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Meaning
nouncountable
All the people in a country or area who have the right to vote in an election.
Grammar: Usually singular in form but can take a plural verb when thinking of the individuals; often preceded by 'the'.
Patterns
- the electorate
- a large electorate
- appeal to the electorate
The electorate will decide the issue in next month's referendum.
Politicians must appeal to a broad electorate to win.
The electorate in this region is mostly elderly.
Word forms
| plural | electorates |
|---|
Common combinations
- the general electorate
- The general electorate seemed uninterested in the local elections.
- a divided electorate
- The country faced a deeply divided electorate.
- appeal to the electorate
- The candidate tried to appeal to the whole electorate, not just party members.
- the electorate votes
- The electorate votes on Sunday.
Synonyms and how they differ
- voters
- Voters is the everyday plural; electorate is a collective term for all voters as a group.
- constituency
- Constituency can mean the voters in a particular district, while electorate usually refers to all eligible voters in a country or area.
Word family
Commonly confused: electorate or election?
electorate vs election
Election is the event; electorate is the group of voters.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'electorate' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Electorate' refers to all the voters collectively, so it can be followed by a plural verb. Option 2 is wrong because 'each' suggests a single voter; option 3 defines a single person; option 4 confuses it with 'election'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “electorate”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.