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Glite Dictionary
presidium

presidium

1 9.9
A small permanent group in some countries that makes decisions for parliament when it is not meeting
  • noun
  • /prɪˈzɪdiəm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : presidio
  • Public demand for it became so forceful that the Presidium of the Estonian Supreme Soviet quickly designated it as the official flag of the Union Republic (Raun 1991:224).
  • Chairman of the presidium
  • Presidium members

Examples

  • The procedure established for the elections of the central committee and the presidium was the same.

    Academic text (2018)

  • The final blow to the regime came a few days later when the conference elected its officials: all eleven members of the governing Presidium were from the opposition front, as were the four vice-chairpersons.

    Academic text (1994)

  • But we need the Presidium on board.

    The Death of Stalin (2017)

  • We need to think about the Presidium.

    The Death of Stalin (2017)

  • Moscow has kept my defection secret from everyone but a few members of the presidium.

    From Russia with Love (1963)

  • At the Soviet Presidium, everyone agreed only one man could achieve such a resolution: Anastas Mikoyan.

    Blog text (22)

  • New or changed boundaries had to be approved by the Presidium of the People's Ikh Khural, Mongolia's legislative body.

    Academic text (1999)

  • The presidium was responsible for making important decisions when the legislative body was not in session.

  • During the conference, the presidium outlined the main objectives for the upcoming year.

  • The chairman of the presidium addressed the assembly to discuss proposed policies and legislative changes.

Synonyms

politburo
vspresidium
12 9.9

The main group in a Communist Party that makes major decisions

is part of the legislature and holds the assembly's authority between sessions
standing committee
vspresidium
  • Formal
3 3.4

A permanent group in a parliament or council that meets regularly to study and make decisions about issues

is vested with the larger assembly's powers and acts for it between sessions

Surface Forms

presidium singular
presidia plural

Morphology

presidium = preside + president (semi-transparent) = preside + ium

The connection to 'preside'/'president' is clear, but '-ium' is a borrowed Latin institutional suffix and the specialized sense 'executive committee' is not fully predictable for all learners.

Etymology

Presidium comes from the Latin praesidium, which meant 'protection' or a 'garrison', and it shares the same root as preside and president ('to sit in front'). So a presidium is like a small group that 'sits in front' of the larger assembly and acts for it between meetings.