Referendum

See also: referendum, référendum, referéndum, and referèndum

German

Usage notes

From Latin referendum. Much reinforced in recent years by English referendum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌʁɛfəˈʁɛndʊm/, /ˌʁeːfə-/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

Referendum n (genitive Referendums, plural Referenden)

1. referendum (direct popular vote on a proposed law or other political decision)

Usage notes

• The German word is used chiefly for referenda on national level or, in the case of independence referenda, the level of nations-to-be. For regional or local votes, the word Volksabstimmung (until recently preferred in all contexts) remains more common.

Synonyms

• Plebiszit (chiefly learned)
• Volksbefragung (chiefly non-binding)
• Volksentscheid (chiefly Swiss)
• Volksabstimmung (especially regional or local)

Derived terms

• EU-Referendum
• Unabhängigkeitsreferendum

Further reading

• “Referendum” in Duden online