duumvir

American  

[doo-uhm-ver, dyoo-] / duˈʌm vər, dyu- /

noun

Roman History.

plural

duumvirs, duumviri

1. one of two officers or magistrates jointly exercising the same public function.

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duumvir British  

/ djuːˈʌmvə /

noun

1. Roman history one of two coequal magistrates or officers

2. either of two men who exercise a joint authority

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Etymology

Origin of duumvir

1590–1600; < Latin, back formation from duumvirōrum, genitive plural of duovirī two men, equivalent to duo- duo- + virī, plural of vir man, cognate with Old English wer ( see werewolf)

Example Sentences

The duumvir is discreet; what I am to do, where go to find my fleet, he will tell on the ship, where a sealed package is waiting me.

From Ben-Hur; a tale of the Christ by Wallace, Lewis

"When the two were lifted to the deck, the duumvir was in his tribune's armor, and the other in the vesture of a rower."

From Ben-Hur; a tale of the Christ by Wallace, Lewis

Lastly, other trumpeters, and other pantomimists and tumblers, dancing, grimacing, gambolling, and mimicking the duumvir whom they are helping to bury, close the procession.

From The Wonders of Pompeii by Monnier, Marc

A duumvir of the place had a daughter whom he had turned out of his house for receiving baptism, and who had taken refuge at Vacca.

From Callista : a Tale of the Third Century by Newman, John Henry

Ben-Hur listened a moment, then completed the introduction by laying his hand upon the man's arm, and saying, "I am the son of Arrius, the duumvir, and thou?"

From Ben-Hur; a tale of the Christ by Wallace, Lewis