stipulate

verb stip·u·late \ ˈsti-pyə-ˌlāt \

|Updated on: 11 Aug 2018

Examples: stipulate in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of stipulate

stipulated; stipulating

intransitive verb

1 : to make an agreement or covenant to do or forbear something : contract

2 : to demand an express term in an agreement —used with for

transitive verb

1 : to specify as a condition or requirement (as of an agreement or offer)

2 : to give a guarantee of

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stipulator

play \ˈsti-pyə-ˌlā-tər\ noun

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stipulate was our Word of the Day on 09/01/2007. Hear the podcast!

Examples of stipulate in a Sentence

The cease-fire was stipulated by the treaty.
The rules stipulate that players must wear uniforms.

Recent Examples of stipulate from the Web

After taking the oath of office for a new five-year term, the government issued a decree that stipulated that the president would appoint the central bank governor, deputies and monetary policy committee members for four-year mandates.

— yeliz candemir, WSJ, "Investors Dump Turkish Lira as They Turn Cold on Emerging Markets," 10 July 2018
The difference was that the NBA had a rule that stipulated that players stand for the anthem, while the NFL did not.

— marcus hayes, Philly.com, "David Stern offers views on LeBron James, Donald Trump and national anthem protests | Marcus Hayes," 28 June 2018
In contrast to government programs that stipulate how money must be spent, basic income is supposed to deliver regular payments without restrictions.

— peter s. goodman, New York Times, "Free Cash to Fight Income Inequality? California City Is First in U.S. to Try," 30 May 2018
Of those cases, 90 were instances where defendants had entered into plea agreements with prosecutors that stipulated a chance of parole.

— michael kiefer, azcentral, "Governor signs bill reinstating chance of parole in some murder cases," 1 May 2018
Authorities said an order of protection was in force prior to the incident that stipulated Miller could not be in the home while intoxicated.

— brian cox, chicagotribune.com, "Skokie man who told police 'shoot me' picks up additional charge in the case," 25 Apr. 2018
Polk’s will had stipulated that following Sarah’s death the estate should be placed in trust and administered by the state.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "Tennessee Votes to Keep Polk’s Grave Where It Is. For Now," 20 Mar. 2018
Ensemble eventually agreed to a deal that stipulated Microsoft would own the intellectual property rights but also pay a higher-than-standard royalty rate.

— richard c. moss, Ars Technica, "“The least-worst idea we had”—The creation of the Age of Empires empire," 8 Jan. 2018
As for the debt, this has taught you that loan repayment terms must be stipulated before money is handed over.

— steven p. dinkin, sandiegouniontribune.com, "A texting driver, a collision and a bad loan," 8 July 2018

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

Did You Know?

Like many terms used in the legal profession, "stipulate" has its roots in Latin. It derives from "stipulatus," the past participle of "stipulari," a verb meaning "to demand a guarantee (as from a prospective debtor)." "Stipulate" has been a part of the English language since the 17th century. In Roman law, oral contracts were deemed valid only if they followed a proper question-and-answer format; "stipulate" was sometimes used specifically of this process of contract making, though it also could be used more generally for any means of making a contract or agreement. The "specify as a condition or requirement" sense of the word also dates from the 17th century, and it is the sense that is most often encountered in current use.