What does "plenipotentiary" mean?

A person invested with full powers, especially as the diplomatic agent of a sovereign state, (originally) charged with handling a certain matter.

What is a synonym for "plenipotentiary"?

Common synonyms include: plenipotent, ;, absolute, all powerful, all-powerful, all-powerful.

Pronounced //ˌplɛn.ɪ.pəʊˈtɛn.ʃəɹ.i//.

//ˌplɛn.ɪ.pəʊˈtɛn.ʃəɹ.i// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Noun

1
A person invested with full powers, especially as the diplomatic agent of a sovereign state, (originally) charged with handling a certain matter.
"None but the like-minded can come plenipotentiary to our court."
2
a diplomat who is fully authorized to represent his or her government wordnet

Adjective

1
Invested with full power. not-comparable
"Near-synonyms: omnicompetent; omnipotent, almighty, all-powerful"
2
Of or relating to a plenipotentiary agent not-comparable

"None but the like-minded can come plenipotentiary to our court."

From Medieval Latin plēnipotentiārius (“having full power”), Late Latin plēnipotēns, from plēnus (“full”) + potēns (“mighty, powerful”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.