Meaning & use
procurators
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“procurators” is a form of “procurator”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounpluraltechnical
Officials in the Roman Empire who managed financial affairs or governed a smaller province for the emperor.
Grammar: Plural of procurator; the singular needs an or the.
Patterns
- procurators of a province
The procurators collected taxes on behalf of the emperor.
Rome sent procurators to govern the smaller provinces where a general was not needed.
Several procurators were recalled after complaints from the local population.
nounplurallegal
Lawyers or public officers in some legal systems who prosecute cases or act for others in court.
Grammar: Used in legal systems such as Scotland and parts of Europe: procurators fiscal.
Patterns
- procurators fiscal
In Scotland, procurators fiscal decide whether a case should go to court.
The procurators argued the case on behalf of their clients.
Local procurators reviewed the reports before any charges were made.
Word forms
| singular | procurator |
|---|
Common combinations
- Roman procurators
- Roman procurators ruled Judea in the first century.
- procurators fiscal
- The procurators fiscal reviewed hundreds of cases a year.
- appoint procurators
- The emperor would appoint procurators to oversee the revenue.
- imperial procurators
- Imperial procurators answered directly to the throne.
Synonyms and how they differ
- governors
- Governors is a broad word for rulers of a region, whereas procurators had a specific Roman title with financial duties.
- magistrates
- Magistrates judge cases, while procurators in the legal sense prosecute or represent.
- administrators
- Administrators is general and modern, while procurators is a precise historical title.
- agents
- Agents is everyday and can mean anyone acting for someone else, while procurators is formal and often official.
Word family
- procurator noun
- one official of this kind
- procuration noun
- the act of managing affairs for another
- procure verb
- to obtain or bring about
- procuracy noun
- the office of a procurator
Commonly confused: procurators or procurers?
procurators vs procurers
Procurers are people who obtain something, often with a bad association, while procurators hold an official or legal role.
Practice
Who were the Roman procurators?
Choose one answer.
Procurators were imperial officials with financial or administrative duties. The other roles belong to different groups in Roman society.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “procurators”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.