being or characteristic of government by representation in which citizens exercise power through elected officers and representatives; "representative government as defined by Abraham Lincoln is government of the people, by the people, for the people"
standing for something else; "the bald eagle is representative of the United States"
serving to represent or typify; "representative moviegoers"; "a representative modern play"
conforming to a type; "the typical (or normal) American"; "typical teenage behavior"
exhibiting the qualities or characteristics that identify a group or kind or category; "a typical American girl"; "a typical suburban community"; "the typical car owner drives 10,000 miles a year"; "a painting typical of the Impressionist school"; "a typical romantic poem"; "a typical case of arteritis"