legislature

noun leg·is·la·ture \ ˈle-jə-ˌslā-chər also ˌle-jə-ˈslā- , British often ˈle-jə-slə-chə \

|Updated on: 7 Jul 2018

Examples: legislature in a Sentence

Definition of legislature

: a body of persons having the power to legislate; specifically : an organized body having the authority to make laws for a political unit

See legislature defined for English-language learners

See legislature defined for kids

Examples of legislature in a Sentence

Our legislature passed a law requiring people to wear safety belts.
Each state has its own legislature.

Recent Examples of legislature from the Web

Turner is the first African-American to represent the county in the state legislature.

— jess nocera, Howard County Times, "Harriet Tubman High School museum project shifts into higher gear," 3 July 2018
California net neutrality bill Another major legislative debate on net neutrality is happening in the California state legislature.

— jon brodkin, Ars Technica, "Bill to save net neutrality is 46 votes short in US House," 27 June 2018
After Maine’s voters approved RCV by referendum in 2016, Republicans in the legislature narrowly passed a bill blocking its implementation.

— The Economist, "In praise of ranked-choice voting," 14 June 2018
State House News Service reporter Katie Lannan told us about efforts in the legislature to get the state lottery online.

— Bloomberg.com, "Bloomberg Baystate Business: Taxes, Lottery, Golf," 14 June 2018
Most of the states that backed Ohio have Republican governors or legislatures; most of those opposed are governed by Democrats.

— richard wolf, USA TODAY, "Supreme Court: States can purge voters who don't vote or respond to warnings," 11 June 2018
State deficits led the governor and legislature to cut money the town had expected in the 2017-18 budget year.

— bill leukhardt, Courant Community, "No Tax Hike In Southington Next Fiscal Year," 31 May 2018
New Jersey’s constitution requires the governor and legislature to agree on a balanced budget before July 1.

— kate king, WSJ, "New Jersey Governor Finds Raising Taxes Isn’t So Easy," 28 May 2018
The populists, who together account for a little more than half the seats in the legislature, have already given Cottarelli the thumbs down.

— nicole winfield, The Seattle Times, "Italy’s political pandemonium, explained in 4 points," 28 May 2018

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

First Known Use of legislature

circa 1676

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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Other Government and Politics Terms

agent provocateur, agitprop, autarky, cabal, egalitarianism, federalism, hegemony, plenipotentiary, popular sovereignty, socialism

LEGISLATURE Defined for English Language Learners

legislature

noun

Definition of legislature for English Language Learners

: a group of people with the power to make or change laws

LEGISLATURE Defined for Kids

legislature

noun leg·is·la·ture \ ˈle-jə-ˌslā-chər \

Definition of legislature for Students

: a body of persons having the power to make and change laws

Law Dictionary

legislature

noun leg·is·la·ture \ ˈle-jəs-ˌlā-chər, -ˌchu̇r \

legal Definition of legislature

: a body of persons having the power to legislate; specifically : an organized body having the authority to make laws for a political unit (as a nation or state) — compare executive, judiciary