[syn: distinguished, grand, imposing, magisterial]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Magisterial \Mag`is*te"ri*al\, a. [L. magisterius magisterial.
See Master.]
1. Of or pertaining to a master or magistrate, or one in
authority; having the manner of a magister; official;
commanding; authoritative. Hence: Overbearing;
dictatorial; dogmatic.
[1913 Webster]
When magisterial duties from his home
Her father called. --Glover.
[1913 Webster]
We are not magisterial in opinions, nor,
dictator-like, obtrude our notions on any man. --Sir
T. Browne.
[1913 Webster]
Pretenses go a great way with men that take fair
words and magisterial looks for current payment.
--L'Estrange.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Alchem. & Old Chem.) Pertaining to, produced by, or of
the nature of, magistery. See Magistery, 2.
[1913 Webster]
Syn: Authoritative; stately; august; pompous; dignified;
lofty; commanding; imperious; lordly; proud; haughty;
domineering; despotic; dogmatical; arrogant.
Usage: Magisterial, Dogmatical, Arrogant. One who is
magisterial assumes the air of a master toward his
pupils; one who is dogmatical lays down his positions
in a tone of authority or dictation; one who is
arrogant insults others by an undue assumption of
superiority. Those who have long been teachers
sometimes acquire, unconsciously, a manner which
borders too much on the magisterial, and may be
unjustly construed as dogmatical, or even arrogant.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
magisterial
adj 1: of or relating to a magistrate; "official magisterial
functions"
2: offensively self-assured or given to exercising usually
unwarranted power; "an autocratic person"; "autocratic
behavior"; "a bossy way of ordering others around"; "a rather
aggressive and dominating character"; "managed the employees
in an aloof magisterial way"; "a swaggering peremptory
manner" [syn: autocratic, bossy, dominating, high-and-
mighty, magisterial, peremptory]
3: used of a person's appearance or behavior; befitting an
eminent person; "his distinguished bearing"; "the monarch's
imposing presence"; "she reigned in magisterial beauty" [syn:
distinguished, grand, imposing, magisterial]
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:
163 Moby Thesaurus words for "magisterial":
Daedalian, U, absolute, absolutist, absolutistic, accepted, adept,
adroit, approved, apt, arbitrary, arch, aristocratic, arrogant,
artistic, august, authentic, authoritarian, authoritative,
autocratic, banner, bloated, bossy, bravura, brilliant, capital,
cardinal, cathedral, central, champion, chief, clean, clever,
coordinated, courtly, crack, crackerjack, crowning, cunning, cute,
daedal, deft, despotic, dexterous, dextrous, dictatorial,
dignified, diplomatic, disdainful, dogmatic, dominant, domineering,
elitist, ex cathedra, excellent, expert, fancy, feudal, first,
focal, foremost, good, goodish, graceful, grand, grave, great,
grinding, handy, headmost, hegemonic, high and mighty, high-handed,
hubristic, imperative, imperial, imperious, important, imposing,
ingenious, insolent, judicative, judicatorial, judicatory,
judicial, judiciary, jurisdictive, kingly, leading, lordly,
magistral, main, majestic, master, masterful, masterly, monocratic,
neat, no mean, noble, official, oppressive, overbearing,
overruling, paramount, peremptory, politic, pontifical,
predominant, preeminent, preponderant, prevailing, primal, primary,
prime, princely, principal, professional, proficient, puffy,
queenly, quick, quite some, ranking, ready, received, regal,
repressive, resourceful, royal, ruling, sedate, self-important,
severe, skillful, slick, sober, solemn, some, sovereign, standard,
star, stately, statesmanlike, statuesque, stellar, strict, stuffy,
stylish, supercilious, supereminent, suppressive, tactful,
the compleat, the complete, topflight, tyrannical, tyrannous,
venerable, virtuoso, well-done, workmanlike, worthy