pro·con·sul

(prō-kŏn′səl)

1. A provincial governor of consular rank in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire.

2. A high administrator in one of the modern colonial empires.

[Middle English, from Latin prōcōnsul, from prō cōnsule, in place of the consul : prō, instead of; see pro-¹ + cōnsule, ablative of cōnsul, consul; see consul.]

pro·con′su·lar (-sə-lər) adj.

pro·con′su·late (-sə-lĭt) n.

pro·con′sul·ship′ n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

proconsul

(prəʊˈkɒnsəl)

1. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) an administrator or governor of a colony, occupied territory, or other dependency

2. (Historical Terms) (in ancient Rome) the governor of a senatorial province

[C14: from Latin, from prō consule (someone acting) for the consul. See pro-², consul]

proconsular adj

proˈconsulate, proˈconsulship n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

pro•con•sul

(proʊˈkɒn səl)

n.

1. an official, usu. a former consul, acting as governor or military commander of an ancient Roman province, with powers similar to those of a consul.

2. any appointed administrator over a dependency or an occupied area.

[1350–1400; Middle English < Latin prōconsul; see pro-¹, consul]

pro•con′su•lar, adj.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	proconsul - an official in a modern colony who has considerable administrative power functionary, official - a worker who holds or is invested with an office
	2.	proconsul - a provincial governor of consular rank in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire governor - the head of a state government
	3.	proconsul - an anthropoid ape of the genus Proconsul hominoid - a primate of the superfamily Hominoidea genus Proconsul - genus of extinct primitive African primates of the Miocene epoch; sometimes considered a subgenus of Dryopithecus

Translations

proconsul

[ˌprəʊˈkɒnsəl] N → procónsul m

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

proconsul

n → Prokonsul(in) m(f)

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

There comes a Mirabeau or a Danton, a Robespierre or a Napoleon, or proconsuls, or an emperor, and there is an end of deliberations and debates.

View in context

Mary's first big discovery was Proconsul Africanus, an apelike creature who arguably may be an ancestor to humans.

THE LAST WORLD

1948 - Paleoanthropologist Mary Leakey finds the first partial fossil skull of Proconsul africanus, an ancestor of apes and humans on Rusinga Island, Kenya.

Today's the day

In both cases (though somewhat later with Clay), the American proconsul controlled both the military occupation forces and the combat elements remaining in theater.

DIVIDE AND FAIL

In what was a moment of utter folly, the American diplomat, Paul Bremer, played "Proconsul", immodestly compared himself to General Douglas MacArthur - who occupied Japan during the Second World War, though the latter left a Constitution behind - and, oblivious to the consequences of his decrees, banned the Ba'ath Party in all its forms.

Putting Iraq back together an uphill task

What is sensitive about a police operation, I ask the great ambassador, the proconsul of America here, Enrile said at a Senate forum on Thursday.

Enrile tells Goldberg: Explain US role in the Mamasapano clash

Respecto a la identidad de la autora del poema y a la fecha de su composicion, Maria Jose Cabezas sostiene que se trata de Faltonia Betitia Proba, esposa de Clodio Celsino Adelfio y madre de Clodio Hermogeniano Olibrio (esposo de Tirrania Anicia Juliana y padre de Anicia Faltonia Proba) y Faltonio Probo Alipio, sobrina de Probo, e hija de Demetriade y Petronio Probiano, proconsul de Africa de 314 a 316, prefecto del pretorio en 321, consul en 322, y prefecto en 331.

PROBA: Poema sagrado sobre los meritos de Cristo

In a statement issued through official channels, Jaua called Almagro the "proconsul" of the US and accused him of "judging our revolution," something he said Almagro has no political or moral standing to do.

Venezuela braces for contested election