stipulate

verb

stip·u·late | \ ˈsti-pyə-ˌlāt

stipulated; stipulating

Definition of stipulate

(Entry 1 of 2)

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

stipulate

adjective

stip·u·late | \ ˈsti-pyə-lət

Definition of stipulate (Entry 2 of 2)

: having stipules

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Did You Know?

Verb

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.

Examples of stipulate in a Sentence

Verb

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

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Those changes require a greater percentage of components in a vehicle to originate in North America, and stipulate nearly half of the auto content must be produced by workers earning at least $16 an hour. — Paul Vieira, WSJ, "U.S., Canada Launch Talks Amid Pressure to Rewrite Nafta," 29 Aug. 2018 Before the introduction of the Limited Warranty in 1975, Good Housekeeping did not stipulate a time frame for consumers to file a complaint about a defective product. — Good Housekeeping, "The History of the Good Housekeeping Seal," 1 Oct. 2011 Known as speedrunners, these savant players compete in a variety of different formats that stipulate the rules for their play through. — Patricia Hernandez, The Verge, "Watching a Breath of the Wild speedrunner collect Koroks is mesmerizing," 15 Dec. 2018 Private funders, like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, already stipulate any papers that come from their grants must be open access. — Brian Resnick, Vox, "Europe has a plan to force academic publishers to make research free to read," 24 Sep. 2018 The provisions stipulate that Cubans may own only one private enterprise and imposes higher taxes and restrictions to a wide spectrum of self-employment endeavors, including the arts. — Nora Gámez Torres, miamiherald, "Cuba imposes more taxes and controls on private sector and increases censorship on the arts," 10 July 2018 To discourage people from traveling to Portugal to end their life, the bills all stipulate that patients must either be Portuguese citizens or legal residents. — Washington Post, "Portugal considers allowing euthanasia, assisted suicide," 28 May 2018 The California law also stipulated that centers that are unlicensed must post a sign saying so, a portion of the legislation struck down by the courts. — Angie Leventis Lourgos, chicagotribune.com, "High court's backing of anti-abortion pregnancy centers raises doubts about Illinois' own 'conscience' law," 29 June 2018 To the contrary, the terms stipulated Iran would always remain under the eye of international inspectors. — Politifact, Teen Vogue, "President Donald Trump Lies About Iran and North Korea," 11 June 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.

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Dictionary Entries near stipulate

stipulative definition

stipule

Statistics for stipulate

Last Updated

10 Feb 2019

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Time Traveler for stipulate

The first known use of stipulate was circa 1624

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More Definitions for stipulate

stipulate

verb

English Language Learners Definition of stipulate

: to demand or require (something) as part of an agreement

See the full definition for stipulate in the English Language Learners Dictionary

stipulate

verb

stip·u·late | \ ˈsti-pyə-ˌlāt

stipulated; stipulating

Legal Definition of stipulate

intransitive verb

1 : to make an agreement or covenant about something (as damages)

2 : to demand a particular promise in an agreement —used with for may…assume or stipulate for obligations of all kinds — Louisiana Civil Code

3 : to agree respecting an aspect of legal proceedings —used with to stipulated to a dismissal of the claim with prejudice — National Law Journal pleaded guilty to the charge of battery and stipulated to the underlying facts — Luna v. Meinke, 844 F. Supp. 1284 (1994)

transitive verb

1 : to specify especially as a condition or requirement of an agreement parties may not stipulate the invalidity of statutes or ordinances — West v. Bank of Commerce & Trusts, 167 F.2d 664 (1948) the contract stipulated that the lessor was responsible for maintenance within a stipulated period of time

2 : to establish (procedure or evidence) by agreement during a proceeding defendant stipulated that evidence was sufficient to support his conspiracy conviction — National Law Journal based on stipulated facts