1. Members of the Praetorian Guard, an elite military unit that served as the personal bodyguard of Roman emperors.
Usage: historical; plural form
2. Members of an exclusive or privileged group with special power or influence within an organization.
Usage: figurative; plural form

Examples

• The pretorians were known for their loyalty to the Roman emperor and their distinctive uniforms.
• Historical accounts describe how the pretorians sometimes wielded enormous political power in Rome.
• The company's pretorians—the senior executives—made all major decisions without consulting lower-level staff.
• Ancient Rome's pretorians were stationed in the capital to protect the imperial palace.
• The pretorians of the organization guarded their privileges jealously and resisted any outside interference.
• During the later empire, ambitious pretorians occasionally assassinated emperors to seize power themselves.