Duma
name, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A Russian legislative assembly such as the historical duma of the Russian Empire or the modern lower house of the Federal Assembly (the Russian national parliament).
"Hence, while preserving his autocratic power, the Czar decrees a “Gosudarstvennaia Duma,” or State Council. The elections for this Duma will cover the whole territory of the Empire, ..."
- 2 a legislative body in the ruling assembly of Russia and of some other republics in the former USSR wordnet
- 3 A drink mixing wine and vodka.
- 1 A surname.
- 2 Alternative letter-case form of duma (“Russian legislative assembly”). alt-of
"Barricades were raised, Dumas were convened and dissolved, emergency laws were enacted, mystics sought escape routes to the beyond—and meanwhile this little group of captains and colonels, nicknamed the “Young Turks,” developed their ideas, read the works of German generals, and gathered strength."
Example
More examples"During one session of the Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, an average of eight laws are adopted."
Etymology
From Russian ду́ма (dúma, “elective legislative assembly”, originally: “thought”), from Proto-Slavic *duma (“breath, spirit; word; mind, thought; advice”). The drink is named after the legislative assembly.
Borrowed from Polish Duma, Romanian Duma or Ukrainian Дума (Duma).
Related phrases
More for "duma"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.