executive order

noun

: regulation sense 2b

Examples of executive order in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In October, 2020, Trump issued an executive order that was largely overlooked in the midst of the pandemic and that fall’s election. —Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 15 July 2024

Blakeman, a Republican, initially attempted to enforce the ban through an executive order issued in February. —Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 15 July 2024

President Biden issued an executive order calling for it to be preserved. —Jiselle Lee, Washington Post, 11 July 2024

Cellphone crackdown: Virginia became the latest in a string of states to legislate restrictions on cellphone use in classrooms, with Gov. Glenn Youngkin issuing an executive order to eliminate the use of devices in public schools. —Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 10 July 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.