From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishcandidatecan‧di‧date /ˈkændədət $ -deɪt, -dət/ ●●● W2 noun [countable] 1 VOTE/ELECTJOB/WORKsomeone who is being considered for a job or is competing in an election a presidential candidatecandidate for There are only three candidates for the job.2 British EnglishEXAM/TEST someone who is taking an examination Candidates are not allowed to use a calculator in this exam.3 SUITABLEsomeone or something that is likely to experience or get somethingcandidate for The school is an obvious candidate for extra funding. The novel must be a prime candidate for the award.COLLOCATIONSadjectivesa Republican/Democratic/Labour etc candidateThis part of Florida usually supports Republican candidates.a presidential candidateWhat is the system for selecting presidential candidates?a parliamentary candidateO'Connor was the parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Democrats.a possible/potential candidate (=someone who you might give a job or position to)There were two women who were possible candidates.a prospective candidate (=someone who might apply for a job or position)Prospective candidates must be educated to degree level.the successful candidate (=the one who gets the job or position)The successful candidate will be innovative and self-motivated.verbsstand as a candidate for something (=compete for a position in an election)Lee stated that he did not intend to stand as a candidate in the presidential elections.put somebody/something forward as a candidate (=suggest someone for election)He allowed his name to be put forward as a candidate for governor.nominate/put up a candidate (=put forward a candidate)Any member may nominate a candidate.field a candidate (=have one of your party's members competing for election)The Green Party decided not to field a candidate in Darlington.select/choose a candidateTaylor was selected as Tory candidate.endorse a candidate (=officially support a candidate)The White House declined to endorse the Republican candidate.
Examples from the Corpus
candidate• Candidates should be at their desks 5 minutes before the start of the examination.• I think Reid is definitely the best candidate.• None of the three Conservative candidates standing in the area for the first time was elected.• the Democratic candidate• We hope to ensure that every candidate will have given some consideration to the issues which affect older people.• My name is Andrew Fraser. I'm your Labour candidate.• One candidate must receive a majority of the vote.• What are the other candidates and their parties afraid of?• Letter databases needed for matching are smaller, but give a much larger number of potential candidates.• No future presidential candidate will go back to Bob Jones university in a hurry.• Some candidates may choose to take a course and gather evidence of competence in parallel.• She stood as the candidate for Hackney East.• Instead of debating each other, the candidates often indulged in soliloquies.• People who buy several souvenir buttons tell which candidate they are supporting.candidate for• Parcells seemed to be the leading candidate for the coaching job at Tampa Bay.• His obvious intelligence makes him a strong candidate for a school for the gifted.prime candidate• In this area there is a surprising lack of desktop publishing software as it is obviously a prime candidate.• This young woman seems a prime candidate.• Joseph was a prime candidate for deportation.• We would have thought this was a prime candidate for disclosure.• Another prime candidate for nostalgia this Christmas is Otis Redding.• Vinyl and aluminum siding are prime candidates to take flight in a high wind.• San Francisco-based Bechtel is one of five companies in a consortium that is considered the prime candidate to build the 68-mile railroad.• Zimmerman is the prime candidate to take over the position of conductor.• He seems to be your prime candidate.From Longman Business Dictionarycandidatecan‧di‧date /ˈkændədət-deɪt, -dət/ noun [countable]1JOBsomeone who is being considered for a job or is competing to be electedCandidates must have strong interpersonal skills.candidate forThey are interviewing three candidates for the post of sales manager.2someone who is taking an examinationOrigin candidate (1600-1700) Latin candidatus, from candidatus “dressed in white”, from candidus ( → CANDID); because someone trying to get elected in ancient Rome wore white clothes 