decree

noun de·cree \ di-ˈkrē \

|Updated on: 8 Aug 2018

Examples: decree in a Sentence

Definition of decree

1 : an order usually having the force of law

a judicial decree

by royal decree

2 a : a religious ordinance enacted by council or titular head

a papal decree

b : a foreordaining will

God's decree

3 a : a judicial decision of the Roman emperor

b : a judicial decision especially in an equity (see equity 3a) court or probate court

See decree defined for English-language learners

See decree defined for kids

Examples of decree in a Sentence

The President issued a decree making the day a national holiday.
Their marriage was annulled by judicial decree.

Recent Examples of decree from the Web

In September 2017, King Salman announced that by today, Saudi women be allowed to obtain drivers’ license and hit the streets in a royal decree that was cheered as an important liberation for women.

— amanda arnold, The Cut, "Women in Saudi Arabia Legally Drive for the First Time Ever," 24 June 2018
This decision is no Jupiterian decree, imposed arbitrarily by the powers in Paris on resentful rurals.

— The Economist, "France’s contentious speed-limit reduction is a model for others," 2 June 2018
The Circuit Court Clerk’s Office has been operating under part of the Shakman decree since decades before Brown got elected.

— john byrne, chicagotribune.com, "Federally appointed monitor to follow Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown's hiring practices," 1 June 2018
In a decree issued after his 7 May inauguration, Putin ordered the creation of 15 world-class centers for research and education.

— andrey allakhverdov, Science | AAAS, "Head of controversial agency becomes Russian minister for science and higher education," 18 May 2018
More often, though, successful politicians exploit changes in social attitudes that are already happening, rather than causing them by decree.

— The Economist, "Fork in the roadShould the party move to the left or to the centre?," 12 July 2018
Parliament can ratify or reject his budget and the president needs parliamentary approval for emergency rule and decrees passed during that time.

— zeynep bilginsoy, Fox News, "Erdogan inaugurates Turkey's powerful executive presidency," 10 July 2018
Parliament can ratify or reject his budget and the president needs parliamentary approval for emergency rule and decrees passed during that time.

— Washington Post, "Erdogan inaugurates Turkey’s powerful executive presidency," 9 July 2018
On March 6, 1346, Raymond was ambushed while trying to enforce this decree and taken prisoner by the Durazzos.

— anne thériault, Longreads, "Queens of Infamy: Joanna of Naples," 3 July 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of decree

Middle English, from Anglo-French decré, from Latin decretum, from neuter of decretus, past participle of decernere to decide, from de- + cernere to sift, decide — more at certain

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

decree Synonyms

Other Legal Terms

actionable, alienable, carceral, chattel, complicity, decedent, larceny, malfeasance, modus operandi

decree

verb

Definition of decree

decreed; decreeing

transitive verb

1 : to command or enjoin by or as if by decree

decree an amnesty

2 : to determine or order judicially

decree a punishment

intransitive verb

: ordain

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decreer

play \-ˈkrē-ər\ noun

See decree defined for English-language learners

Examples of decree in a Sentence

The government decreed a national holiday.
The change was decreed by the President.
The City Council has decreed that all dogs must be kept on a leash.

Recent Examples of decree from the Web

Obsessed with trying to modernize his country, the 18th-century Czar Peter the Great decreed a new capital would be built from scratch in a swamp by the Baltic Sea.

— james ellingworth, Fox News, "WORLD CUP: Sun never sets in a St. Petersburg summer," 7 May 2018
Hungary’s parliament last week approved a legislative package aimed not only at barring the gates to almost any outsider — but also decreeing punishment for those who try to aid would-be migrants.

— laura king, latimes.com, "The European country that makes the U.S. look lenient on immigration," 28 June 2018
David McNew/Getty Images Surprised by vehement public reaction, President Donald Trump has decreed an end to the policy of separating arriving asylum seekers from their children.

— david a. martin, Vox, "How to fix the crisis caused by Central American asylum seekers — humanely," 2 July 2018
The 1990 movie features staples from the original 1940s comic books, including Nazi supervillain Red Skull (though the producer, late B-movie impresario Menahem Golan, decreed he become Italian to avoid offending the German market).

— adam thompson, WSJ, "The ‘Captain America’ You Probably Missed," 18 June 2018
Last year Kazakhstan’s president-for-life Nursultan Nazarbayev decreed that the country would switch from reliance on Cyrillic script to use of Latin script – a move away from the country’s former Russian colonizers and toward the West.

— staff, The Christian Science Monitor, "Meanwhile in ... Kazakhstan, an entire nation is struggling to learn a new alphabet," 7 June 2018
For the price — which typically starts around $46 for the smallest plots, but those are being offered at the festival for $40 — buyers not only become conservationists but receive a certificate of sale decreeing them a lord or lady.

— robert mccoppin, chicagotribune.com, "Want to be a Scottish lord or lady? Opportunity beckons at suburban festival, where 'titles' will be sold," 16 June 2018
Gun-rights hardliners' dream victory came in a 2008 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, which decreed that the Second Amendment protected an individual’s right to possess a firearm for self-defense.

— jon schuppe /, NBC News, "What is gun control? What you need to know," 5 June 2018
In breaking up the parade the police were acting under city council orders which had decreed there would be no parade.

— sandiegouniontribune.com, "May 31, 1933: Memorial Day riot," 31 May 2018

Origin and Etymology of decree

see ¹decree

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

decree Synonyms

Synonyms

call, command, dictate, direct, mandate, ordain, order;

Near Antonyms

cancel, countermand, rescind;

Related Words

ask, petition, request;

demand, require;

Phrases

call for;

DECREE Defined for English Language Learners

decree

noun

Definition of decree for English Language Learners

: an official order given by a person with power or by a government
: an official decision made by a court of law

decree

verb

Definition of decree for English Language Learners

: to order or decide (something) in an official way

DECREE Defined for Kids

decree

noun de·cree \ di-ˈkrē \

Definition of decree for Students

: an order or decision given by a person or group in authority

decree

verb

Definition of decree for Students

decreed; decreeing

: to give an order as an authority

Mom decreed that it was bedtime.

Law Dictionary

decree

noun de·cree \ di-ˈkrē \

legal Definition of decree

1 : an order having the force of law

by judicial decree

2 : a judicial decision especially in an equity or probate court; broadly : judgment

divorce decree

interlocutory decree

— consent decree

: a decree entered by a court that is determined by the parties' agreement : a settlement between the parties that is subject to judicial approval and supervision; specifically : such a decree by which the accused agrees to cease alleged illegal activities without admitting guilt

— decree nisi decrees nisi

: a provisional decree that will become final unless cause is shown why it should not

Note: Some states grant divorces using decrees nisi. The decree nisi creates a time period (as of 3 months) allowing for possible reconciliation or for completion of various arrangements (as custody).

— decree pro confesso

: a decree entered by a court based on a defendant's default and the presumption that the allegations are confessed — compare default judgment at judgment 1a

— final decree

: a decree that disposes of an action by determining all matters in dispute including especially the parties' rights — compare final judgment at judgment 1a

— interlocutory decree

: a decree that is made during the course of an action and that does not settle all matters in dispute

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