advocacy

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noun ad·vo·ca·cy \ˈad-və-kə-sē\

Definition of advocacy

: the act or process of supporting a cause or proposal : the act or process of advocating (see ²advocate) something known for his advocacy of gay rights

See advocacy defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of advocacy from the Web

The Club for Growth, a conservative Washington advocacy group, teamed up with Tea Party Patriots in the attack on Portman and others.

— deirdre shesgreen, Cincinnati.com, "Conservatives attack Rob Portman over opposition to Obamacare repeal-only bill," 19 July 2017
A quick extension would also bolster Brown’s global advocacy for climate action.

— jonathan j. cooper, The Seattle Times, "California lawmakers to decide fate of landmark climate law," 17 July 2017
Some members of the liberal advocacy group Indivisible FWTX contacted Granger’s office earlier this year and had a sit-down meeting with her in April.

— anna m. tinsley, star-telegram, "U.S. Rep. Granger won’t hold town halls because of ‘so many threats’," 15 July 2017
Paul said that some officials and advocacy groups have slowed the process to fine-tune the policy, while others are hoping that a slower pace of discussions will derail the debate.

— Washington Post, "Despite promise, no decision yet from Trump on steel tariffs," 10 July 2017
HA: So there are three aspects to BAJI’s work — public policy advocacy, organizing, and direct legal services.

— Longreads, "An Unforgiving Legal System Welcomes Black Immigrants to America," 10 July 2017
Emly Beauregard, the executive director of Kentucky Voices for Health, a coalition of health advocacy groups, told the Courier-Journal that association health plans are not the solution to individual market woes.

— darcy costello, The Courier-Journal, "Rand Paul says he'd be closer to backing health care bill with fixes on association plans," 6 July 2017
In her first job out of college as the youngest State Director for a national Democratic advocacy group in the country, Aries burned out.

— jessica militare, Glamour, "These Women Prove That Work Burnout is Real—and Beatable," 6 July 2017
Justice lawyers ask judge to reject bid to block gathering Advocacy group calls committee’s plan for information ‘

— andrew m harris, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Panel Portrayed by U.S. as No Threat to Voter Privacy," 5 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'advocacy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of advocacy

see ¹advocate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

Law Dictionary

advocacy

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noun ad·vo·ca·cy \ˈad-və-kə-sē\

Legal Definition of advocacy

1 : the profession or work of an advocate
2 : the action of advocating, pleading for, or supporting a cause or proposal a consequence of his moving advocacy — W. O. Douglas