executive order

noun

: regulation sense 2b

Examples of executive order in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Instead, many felt stuck in limbo after President Biden signed an executive order that prevents migrants from seeking asylum along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border when crossings surge. —Reyes Mata Iii, New York Times, 8 June 2024

That same year, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney signed an executive order banning all firearms from local parks facilities. —Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 June 2024

For a portion of the event that reporters were allowed to attend, Harris made no mention of Trump’s criminal conviction or President Biden’s executive order to restrict asylum seekers from crossing the southern border. —Anabel Sosa, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2024

Last year, President Biden signed an executive order enforcing a Trump-era rule requiring hospitals to make the prices of health services public. —Suzanne Nuyen, NPR, 5 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1862, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

executive order

noun

: an order issued by a government's executive on the basis of authority specifically granted to the executive branch (as by the U.S. Constitution or a congressional act)

the National Security Agency was created by an executive order

compare proclamation, statute

Note: An executive order from the president does not have the force of law until it is printed in the Federal Register.