Cabinet Ministers
Preserved but no longer current.
In British politics, a deliberative committee of the principal mem- bers of the Government, who are privileged to consult and advise the sovereign (originally in his private cabinet, or chamber), and who lead, and are responsible to, Parliament. The number of members has varied from a dozen to as many as twenty-two, but it always contains the chief officers of state, viz.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Cabinet Ministers” mean?
In British politics, a deliberative committee of the principal mem- bers of the Government, who are privileged to consult and advise the sovereign (originally in his private cabinet, or chamber), and who lead, and are responsible to, Parliament. The number of members has varied from a dozen to as many as twenty-two, but it always contains the chief officers of state, viz.
Is “Cabinet Ministers” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.