LEG'ATE, noun [Latin legatus, from lego, to send. See Lackey.] 1. An embassador; but especially, 2. The pope's embassador to a foreign prince or state; a cardinal or bishop sent as the pope's representative or commissioner to a sovereign prince. Legates are of three kinds; legates a latere, or counselors and assistants of his holiness, legates de latere, who are not cardinals, and legates by office.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI