potentate

Definitions

potent (powerful) + -ate (one having/holding) = 'one who holds power' — a powerful ruler or monarch. Here -ate forms a person-noun (as in magistrate, advocate), not a verb. The word usually implies sweeping, unchecked authority.

Why It Means This

Potentate is formal and somewhat literary or historical, carrying a whiff of pomp and absolute rule. It fits kings, sultans, and despots — 'a foreign potentate' visiting in state — but would sound absurd applied to a modern elected official. The flavor is grand, old-world, and often slightly disapproving.

Common Collocations

• 1.foreign potentate外国权贵
• 2.absolute potentate专制君主
• 3.powerful potentate权势滔天的统治者
• 4.Eastern potentate东方君主

Example Sentences

• 1.

  The ambassador was received like a visiting potentate.

• 2.

  The novel is set in the court of an Eastern potentate.

• 3.

  He ran the company like a medieval potentate.