adj · noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
UK:/ˈdɪɡnɪtɹi/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:D IH1 G N AH0 T EH2 R IY0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adj
Meaning 1
Relating to dignity.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
An important or influential person, or one of high rank or position.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
an important or influential (and often overbearing) person
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: very important person, VIP, high-up, panjandrum, high muckamuck
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: important person, influential person, personage
History
Etymology
Borrowed from French dignitaire.
Across languages
Translations
38 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Bulgarian:
сановник
(sanovnik)
— important or influential person
Catalan:
dignatari
— important or influential person
Chinese Mandarin:
高官
(gāoguān)
— important or influential person
Chinese Mandarin:
高僧
(gāosēng)
— important or influential person
Chinese Mandarin:
要人
(yàorén)
— important or influential person
Dutch:
hoogwaardigheidsbekleder
— important or influential person
Dutch:
hoogwaardigheidsbekleedster
— important or influential person
Egyptian:
z:a-H-S20-A51
(sꜥḥ)
— important or influential person
Esperanto:
altrangulo
— important or influential person
Finnish:
merkkihenkilö
— important or influential person
Finnish:
arvohenkilö
— important or influential person
French:
dignitaire
— important or influential person
German:
Würdenträger
— important or influential person
German:
Würdenträgerin
— important or influential person
Greek:
αξιωματούχος
(axiomatoúchos)
— important or influential person
Hungarian:
méltóság
— important or influential person
Icelandic:
fyrirmaður
— important or influential person
Icelandic:
stórmenni
— important or influential person
Italian:
dignitario
— important or influential person
Japanese:
高官
(kōkan)
— important or influential person
Japanese:
高僧
(kōsō)
— important or influential person
Japanese:
要人
(yōjin)
— important or influential person
Latin:
dignitas
— important or influential person
Manx:
ard-er
— important or influential person
Manx:
ard-ghooinney
— important or influential person
Māori:
paewai
— important or influential person
Persian:
عالی رتبه
— important or influential person
Persian:
عالی مقام
— important or influential person
Polish:
dygnitarz
— important or influential person
Polish:
dostojnik
— important or influential person
Portuguese:
dignitário
— important or influential person
Portuguese:
dignatário
— important or influential person
Romanian:
demnitar
— important or influential person
Russian:
сано́вник
(sanóvnik)
— important or influential person
Spanish:
dignatario
— important or influential person
Swedish:
dignitär
— important or influential person
Unami:
ahinu
— important or influential person
Welsh:
urddasolion
— important or influential person