purview

noun

pur·​view ˈpər-ˌvyü 

1

a

: the body or enacting part of a statute

b

: the limit, purpose, or scope of a statute

2

: the range or limit of authority, competence, responsibility, concern, or intention

3

: range of vision, understanding, or cognizance

Did you know?

It may not be illogical to assume a connection between purview and view, but is there one? Not exactly. Although the two words share a syllable, you’ll find that they have very different histories as viewed in the etymological rearview mirror. Purview comes from purveu, a word often found in the legal statutes of 13th- and 14th-century England. These statutes, written in Anglo-French, regularly open with the phrase purveu est, which translates literally to "it is provided." Purveu in turn comes from porveu, the past participle of the Old French verb porveeir, meaning "to provide." View, on the other hand, comes (via Middle English) from the past participle of another Anglo-French word, veer, meaning "to see," and ultimately from the Latin word vidēre, of the same meaning.

Examples of purview in a Sentence

After the true shock and awe of a campaign of massive surplus, as in the Gulf War, no regime would have risked its survival by failing to go after the terrorists within its purview. —Mark Helprin, Wall Street Journal, 17 May 2004

It is the use of informal, back channels outside public or congressional purview—designed partly to thwart publicity and partly to hold down the temperature of disputes within the government—that critics say denies the protections of open government. —Bob Woodward et al., Washington Post, 20-26 Jan. 1992

… the contemporary university, though, has reached beyond the purview of education, and it has thereby become entangled in problems it lacks the means to resolve. —Louis Menand, Harper's, December 1991

The case is within the court's purview.

That question is outside my purview.

The moral dilemmas of the early settlers are beyond the purview of this book.

Recent Examples on the Web

Other offices at City Hall and others under the purview of the city are still free to do business with Pradere. —Ana Claudia Chacin, Miami Herald, 11 Apr. 2024

This will continue to be the case for as long as the fundamental democratic process of districting is in the hands of politicians and not under the purview of the voters. —TIME, 1 Apr. 2024

Crypto was invented at the height of the Great Recession as a decentralized alternative to the traditional financial system—a place explicitly beyond the purview of big banks and heedless regulators. —Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic, 28 Mar. 2024

The plan to move charitable gaming under the purview of the horse racing corporation drew criticism from lawmakers and a member of the public. —Rebecca Grapevine, The Courier-Journal, 27 Mar. 2024

Essentially any issue that touches on the player-club relationship is within Management Council’s purview. —Chris Deubert, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024

The Joker may be the purview of DC Comics, not Marvel, but the fear of running afoul of copyright laws was no less of a concern. —Eric Grode, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2024

Contemporary golf course development is typically the purview of either big institutional players or a deep pocketed individual—not just ‘some schmuck who buys some land and tries to figure it out,’ as Koprowski puts it. —Mike Dojc, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

Ryerson strongly implied that glyphosate is to blame for the rise of various illnesses and chronic conditions nationwide and that only Kennedy could bring an end to its use on the nation’s farms, which is something that would not actually be in the president’s purview. —Anna Merlan, WIRED, 26 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English purveu, from Anglo-French purveu est it is provided (opening phrase of a statute)

First Known Use

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

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Legal Definition

purview

noun

pur·​view ˈpər-ˌvyü 

1

: the body of a statute or the part that begins with Be it enacted and ends before the repealing clause

2

: the limit or scope of a law

Etymology

Anglo-French purveu est it is provided (opening phrase of a statute)