Māg'nāte, n.

n. [Sp. & It. magnate, Fr. magnat, L. Lat. (pl.) magnates, magnati, from Lat. magnus, great.]

1. A person of rank; a noble or grandee; a person of note or distinction in any sphere; as, literary magnates. “More than one of the magnates who bore that wide-spread name.” Macaulay.
2. One of the nobility, or certain high officers of state belonging to the noble estate in the national representation of Hungary, and formerly of Poland.