legislate
verb
leg·is·late
ˈle-jə-ˌslāt 
legislated; legislating
: to perform the function of legislation
specifically
: to make or enact laws
: to mandate, establish, or regulate by or as if by legislation
Examples of legislate in a Sentence
They are attempting to legislate morality.
the need to better legislate foreign trade
trying to legislate changes in the current law
Recent Examples on the Web
Whether by legislating an outright ban on oil and gas, or regulating it to death, these radicals aim to destroy an entire industry that is critical to our state all in the name of saving the planet from climate change.
—
Bob Beauprez, The Denver Post, 4 Apr. 2024
While several bills have been filed regulating some aspects of AI, there hasn’t been much movement on legislating AI technologies.
—Emilia David, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
This legislation would grant libraries in the rest of Maryland’s jurisdictions, rather than legislating county-by-county, the ability to unionize.
—Hannah Gaskill, Baltimore Sun, 2 Feb. 2024
But some experts have warned that legislating social media can be precarious.
—Kalhan Rosenblatt, NBC News, 30 Jan. 2024
The initial law was legislated in 2002 and has since been applied to a few people each year, initially to Hezbollah combatants who had been captured in Lebanon and brought to Israel.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2024
Back in 1998, the high court ruled that the ultra-Orthodox exemption violated the principle of equality under the law, and ordered the Parliament to legislate a fairer arrangement to replace the existing regime.
—Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 15 Mar. 2024
However, with states like California moving to legislate a $20 per hour minimum wage for frontline hourly workers, the focus on innovation at the frontline is set to increase significantly.
—Stephen Miles, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
Although part of the United Kingdom, lawmakers in the Assembly have the powers to legislate over a range of issues not explicitly reserved for the Westminster government in London.
—Amy Cassidy, CNN, 3 Feb. 2024
Bob Beauprez, The Denver Post, 4 Apr. 2024
While several bills have been filed regulating some aspects of AI, there hasn’t been much movement on legislating AI technologies.
—Emilia David, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
This legislation would grant libraries in the rest of Maryland’s jurisdictions, rather than legislating county-by-county, the ability to unionize.
—Hannah Gaskill, Baltimore Sun, 2 Feb. 2024
But some experts have warned that legislating social media can be precarious.
—Kalhan Rosenblatt, NBC News, 30 Jan. 2024
The initial law was legislated in 2002 and has since been applied to a few people each year, initially to Hezbollah combatants who had been captured in Lebanon and brought to Israel.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2024
Back in 1998, the high court ruled that the ultra-Orthodox exemption violated the principle of equality under the law, and ordered the Parliament to legislate a fairer arrangement to replace the existing regime.
—Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 15 Mar. 2024
However, with states like California moving to legislate a $20 per hour minimum wage for frontline hourly workers, the focus on innovation at the frontline is set to increase significantly.
—Stephen Miles, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
Although part of the United Kingdom, lawmakers in the Assembly have the powers to legislate over a range of issues not explicitly reserved for the Westminster government in London.
—Amy Cassidy, CNN, 3 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'legislate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near legislate
Cite this Entry
“Legislate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legislate. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
legislate
verb
leg·is·late
ˈlej-ə-ˌslāt
legislated; legislating
1
: to make laws
the constitutional power to legislate
2
: to cause, establish, or regulate by legislation
legislating foreign trade
Legal Definition
legislate
verb
leg·is·late
ˈle-jəs-ˌlāt
legislated; legislating
: to perform the function of legislation
specifically
: to make or enact laws
: to cause, create, provide, or bring about by legislation
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