representative

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun One that serves as an example or type for others of the same classification.
• noun One that serves as a delegate or agent for another.
• noun A member of a governmental body, usually legislative, chosen by popular vote.
• noun A member of the US House of Representatives or of the lower house of a state legislature.
• adjective Representing, depicting, or portraying or able to do so.
• adjective Authorized to act as an official delegate or agent.
• adjective Of or characteristic of government by representation.
• adjective Like or typical of others of the same class.

from The Century Dictionary.

• Representing, portraying, or typifying.
• Acting as the substitute for or agent of another or of others; performing the functions of another or of others.
• Pertaining to or founded on representation of the people; conducted by the agency of delegates chosen by or representing the people: as, a representative government.
• In biology: Typical; fully presenting, or alone representing, the characters of a given class or group: as, in zoölogy and botany, the representative genus of a family.
• Representing in any group the characters of another and different group: chiefly used in the quinarian system; also, pertaining to such supposed representation: as, the representative theory.
• In zoögeography, replacing; taking the place of, or holding a similar position: as, the llama is representative of the camel in America.
• In psychology and logic, mediately known; known by means of a representation or object which signifies another object.
• where fa is a function of limited variation between A and another limit, B, exceeding b, while φ (a, n) is such a function of α and the parameter n that the integral of it between the same limits is less than an assignable finite quantity, whatever value between A and B be given to b, and whatever value be given to n; and is such that when n tends toward infinity, the integral of φ (a, n) from A to b, where b is greater than A and less than B, tends toward a constant finite value. This is called a representative integral, because it is equal to the function f A multiplied by a constant.
• noun One who or that which represents another person or thing; that by which anything is represented or exhibited.
• noun An agent, deputy, or substitute, who supplies the place of another or others, being invested with his or their authority: as, an attorney is the representative of his client or employer; specifically, a member of the British House of Commons, or, in the United States, of the lower branch of Congress (the House of Representatives) or of the corresponding branch of the legislature in some States.
• noun In law: One who occupies another's place and succeeds to his beneficial rights in such a way that he may also in some degree be charged with his liabilities.
• noun One who takes under the Statute of Descents or the Statute of Distributions, or under a will or trust deed, a share which by the primary intention would have gone to his parent had the parent survived to the time for taking.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• adjective Fitted to represent; exhibiting a similitude.
• adjective Bearing the character or power of another; acting for another or others.
• adjective Conducted by persons chosen to represent, or act as deputies for, the people.
• adjective Serving or fitted to present the full characters of the type of a group; typical.
• adjective Similar in general appearance, structure, and habits, but living in different regions; -- said of certain species and varieties.
• adjective (Metaph.) Giving, or existing as, a transcript of what was originally presentative knowledge. See Presentative, 3 and Represent, 8.
• noun One who, or that which, represents (anything); that which exhibits a likeness or similitude.
• noun An agent, deputy, or substitute, who supplies the place of another, or others, being invested with his or their authority.
• noun (Law) One who represents, or stands in the place of, another.
• noun U.S. A member of the lower or popular house in a State legislature, or in the national Congress.
• noun That which presents the full character of the type of a group.
• noun A species or variety which, in any region, takes the place of a similar one in another region.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• adjective Typical; having the same properties of interest as a larger group.
• noun One who may speak for another in a particular capacity, especially in negotiation.
• noun A member of a legislative or governing body who represents a constituency.
• noun One that is taken as typical of its class.
• noun US, politics A member of the US House of Representatives.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun an item of information that is typical of a class or group
• adjective being or characteristic of government by representation in which citizens exercise power through elected officers and representatives
• adjective standing for something else
• adjective serving to represent or typify
• noun a person who represents others
• noun an advocate who represents someone else's policy or purpose
• noun a member of the United States House of Representatives