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Meaning & use

mayoral

adjective·Academicformal

Last updated

UK/ˈmeɪərəl/
US/ˈmeɪərəl/

Meaning

  1. adjectivebefore a nounformal

    Relating to a mayor or to the office or duties of a mayor.

    Grammar: Appears before a noun and not after a verb: a mayoral candidate, not the candidate is mayoral.

    Patterns

    • mayoral election
    • mayoral candidate

    The city will hold its mayoral election in November.

    She announced her mayoral campaign in front of the old town hall.

    The mayoral office has a view of the river.

Common combinations

mayoral election
Turnout was low in the mayoral election.
mayoral candidate
The mayoral candidate promised cheaper buses.
mayoral race
The mayoral race is tight this year.
mayoral powers
Mayoral powers differ from city to city.
mayoral office
The mayoral office issued a statement on the flood.

Synonyms and how they differ

municipal
Municipal refers to a whole city government, whereas mayoral refers only to the mayor.
civic
Civic is broader and concerns citizens and public life in a town.
city
City is a plain noun modifier that does not tell us the mayor is involved.

Word family

mayor noun
the head of a city government
mayoress noun
old-fashioned word for a mayor's wife or a female mayor
mayoralty noun
the office or term of a mayor

Commonly confused: mayoral or major?

mayoral vs major

Major means important or large, while mayoral relates to a mayor; they sound similar but are not connected.

Practice

The ___ candidate promised to fix the potholes.

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