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federal 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of federalnext
as in national
of or relating to a federation or to its central government A federal system of government distributes power between a country's central and regional governments. The President, Congress, and the Supreme Court are all part of the federal government of the United States.

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Federal

2 of 2

noun

1
as in fed

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2
as in Confederate

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of federal
Adjective
There have been multiple proposals and suggestions in response to the high fuel prices during spring and summer 2026 to suspend federal and state diesel and gas taxes. — Paula Wethington, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026 But the interest in a landmark designation could come from potential tax credits federal and state governments offer to preservation projects. — Charlotte Observer, 18 Sep. 2026 Until the end of the Biden administration, federal authorities did not expect migrants to leave the country while their visa renewal was pending. — J. Toby Reiner, The Conversation, 18 Sep. 2026 Newsom said the accelerated timeline was in the absence of any federal oversight. — Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 18 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for federal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for federal
  1. national
  2. G-man
  3. GI
  4. governmental
  5. narc
  6. tracer
  7. plainclothesman
  8. tail
Adjective
  • Industry statistics show that residential electricity prices in California run 89% above the national average and have climbed nearly 9% compared to the same period last year, while fuel prices across the state continue to set new highs.
    — , CNBC, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Lafita's cart was filled with red roses and white ginger lilies, Cuba's national flower.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of national
Noun
  • Reach uses a crab trap to disarm a G-man brandishing an On the Waterfront–style hook.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Michael Biehn also plays a G-man who keeps tabs on Kammler’s work.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of G-man
Noun
  • Foods that are lower on the index have less impact on blood sugar levels than those higher on the GI chart.
    — Eleesha Lockett, Verywell Health, 13 Sep. 2026
  • Hall pointed to a 2023 study that looked at the digestion issues of nearly 89,000 Americans included in the National GI Survey II.
    — Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of GI
Adjective
  • After his release, he was arrested last October in the Bronx for obstructing governmental administration and resisting arrest, and was released without bail.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Still, an athlete could challenge PCSA on these grounds, a move that would ask a court to decide whether the statute supplies adequate federal standards and governmental oversight.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of governmental
Noun
  • But the very act of putting on a wearable—of willingly adorning oneself with a tiny computerized narc—is an act of surrender.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The team's 33-15 loss gave it a 2-11 record, which is the worst nark in the NFC.
    — Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Dec. 2025
Definition of narc
Noun
  • This imaging test uses a tracer that attaches to PSMA proteins, allowing doctors to identify where prostate cancer cells may be located throughout the body.
    — Lauryn Higgins, Flow Space, 15 June 2026
  • Many health care workers served longer, harder deployments than mine — Sierra Leonean nurses, Guinean contact tracers, Liberian community health workers — and carried equal or greater burdens, yet Americans rarely heard their stories.
    — Krutika Kuppalli, STAT, 20 May 2026
Definition of tracer
Noun
  • Less than a month later, plainclothesmen arrested Nassar at a local tire store, and Munford took him into custody.
    — Jason Schmidt, Glamour, 30 Oct. 2018
  • Hustling bucks and ducking the Third Division boys, those earnest young plainclothesmen assigned to the vice squad who work out of the 17th Precinct on the East Side.
    — Gail Sheehy, Daily Intelligencer, 9 Sep. 2017
Definition of plainclothesman
Noun
  • One simply went outside through a doggy door, while the other tried to engage the man, walking up to him repeatedly with toys in mouth, tail wagging.
    — Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The 2% miss rate that looks like a rounding error to a generalist reads as a five-year tail problem to an operator.
    — Kyle Nakatsuji, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of tail

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Cite this Entry

“Federal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/federal. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

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