ratification

noun

rat·​i·​fi·​ca·​tion ˌra-tə-fə-ˈkā-shən 

plural ratifications

: the act or process of ratifying something (such as a treaty or amendment) : formal confirmation or sanction

… the ratification of the 13th Amendment formally abolished slavery in the United States.

—Suzanne Travers

A treaty would require two-thirds approval in the Senate for ratification.

—Lois Ember

More than 100 countries signed the Rome Treaty, and it is expected that the court will come into existence within the next year or two, when it receives the necessary sixty treaty ratifications.

—Richard Falk

Examples of ratification in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

America’s ratification that year broke a logjam of inaction by nations that had signed the agreement but were wary about actually ratifying it as a legal document. —Gary W. Yohe, The Conversation, 10 Jan. 2026

Over decades, advocates employed such methods as petitions, public demonstrations, organized marches and legal challenges until the movement finally achieved victory with the ratification of the 19th Amendment on August 18, 1920, when women were finally granted the legal right to vote. —Leslie Hoyle Guerra, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2026

The ratification of the Constitution in 1788 and Washington’s unanimous election the following year did little to resolve the tensions around the man and the office. —Jake Lundberg, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026

That’s another ratification for a big success. —New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 1 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ratification

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration

Kids Definition

ratification

noun

rat·​i·​fi·​ca·​tion

ˌrat-ə-fə-ˈkā-shən

: the action of ratifying