regulate

verb

reg·​u·​late ˈre-gyə-ˌlāt 

 also  ˈrā-

regulated; regulating

transitive verb

1

a

: to govern or direct according to rule

b(1)

: to bring under the control of law or constituted authority

(2)

: to make regulations for or concerning

regulate the industries of a country

2

: to bring order, method, or uniformity to

regulate one's habits

3

: to fix or adjust the time, amount, degree, or rate of

regulate the pressure of a tire

regulative

ˈre-gyə-ˌlā-tiv 

 also  ˈrā-

adjective

regulatory

ˈre-gyə-lə-ˌtȯr-ē 

 also  ˈrā-

adjective

Synonyms

• bridle
• check
• constrain
• contain
• control
• curb
• govern
• hold
• inhibit
• keep
• measure
• pull in
• rein (in)
• restrain
• rule
• tame

Examples of regulate in a Sentence

The dam regulates the flow of water into the river.

We need better laws to regulate the content of the Internet.

Laws have been made to regulate working conditions.

The government regulates how much lead may be found in our water supply.

The department regulates foreign trade.

Recent Examples on the Web

The failure to properly regulate immigration is leading the United States to neglect its current biggest geopolitical opportunity: consolidating North American cooperation. —Kori Schake, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2023

Many people don’t consider that their vacation destination may not have the same rules around safety equipment as their home city or state, or that homes rented on sites like Airbnb could be regulated differently than hotels. —Ben Goggin, NBC News, 30 Nov. 2023

The repeal of those old laws followed so swiftly by the imposition of other ones regulating speech suggests Ireland retains its faith in the power of moralizing censorship to manage or disguise political failures. —The Editors, National Review, 29 Nov. 2023

Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg News A Journal editorial notes that Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) has finally acknowledged the disappointing results from ObamaCare’s attempt to reduce prices by regulating insurer profits. —James Freeman, WSJ, 27 Nov. 2023

Because the Hudson River is regulated, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation were required to greenlight construction plans. —Alexandra E. Petri, Los Angeles Times, 26 Nov. 2023

Specialized but affordable satellites have potential to make surprising discoveries and create new opportunities both for businesses and for government agencies that regulate businesses. —IEEE Spectrum, 25 Nov. 2023

But despite their low profile, mosses, which Kimmerer has compared to forests in miniature, complete with canopies of single-cell-thick leaves and diverse populations of microscopic organisms, play an outsize role in our ecosystem, regulating water tables and soil temperature. —Jenny Comita, New York Times, 21 Nov. 2023

On Monday, Reuters reported that France, Germany and Italy had reached an agreement on how AI should be regulated, a move expected to accelerate negotiations at the European level. —Reuters, Fortune Europe, 21 Nov. 2023

See More

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Late Latin regulatus, past participle of regulare, from Latin regula rule

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing regulate

• self-regulate
• re-regulate

• self-regulate
• re-regulate

Kids Definition

regulate

verb

reg·​u·​late ˈreg-yə-ˌlāt 

regulated; regulating

1

a

: to govern or direct according to rule

b

: to bring under the control of authority

regulate prices

2

: to bring order or method to

regulate one's habits

3

: to fix or adjust the time, amount, degree, or rate of

regulate the pressure of a tire

the brain regulates the heartbeat

regulator

-ˌlāt-ər

noun

regulatory

-lə-ˌtōr-ē 

-ˌtȯr-

adjective

Etymology

from Latin regulatus, past participle of regulare "to regulate, direct," from regula "a rule, straightedge" — related to rail entry 1, regent, rule

Medical Definition

regulate

transitive verb

reg·​u·​late ˈreg-yə-ˌlāt 

regulated; regulating

1

: to control or direct according to rule or law

regulate the testing of experimental drugs

2

: to fix or adjust the time, amount, degree, or rate of

regulatory

-lə-ˌtōr-ē, -ˌtȯr- 

adjective

Legal Definition

regulate

transitive verb

reg·​u·​late

regulated; regulating

1

: to govern or direct according to rule

2

a

: to bring under the control of law

b

: to make regulations for or concerning