1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

edicts

noun

plural of edict
1
as in decrees
an order publicly issued by an authority the school board's edict put a new student dress code into effect

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in instructions
a statement of what to do that must be obeyed by those concerned this household's edict of long standing: no television until all homework has been completed

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 edicts The film by and large follows the edicts of Iranian neorealism, with unobtrusive observations and a naturalistic soundscape. — Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 11 Sep. 2026 Many believe Beijing perceived Tung as a loyalist who would obey the Communist leadership’s edicts. — Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026 The president’s orders and edicts have no basis in reality, are nonsensical and are making our nation significantly less safe. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 20 Aug. 2026 Those who oppose the Mexican Mafia, or fail to follow the edicts of the gang’s leaders, are often targeted for beatings or even death. — Sean Emery, Oc Register, 22 July 2026 Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse The highly agile Getty shooter Alan Crowhurst has done us a great favor by bringing concrete cloakroom evidence of the many social and administrative challenges that the (famous) Royal Ascot costume edicts require in order to be properly met. — Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 21 June 2026 The age of the Germanic male genius delivering edicts from on high has run its course. — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026 Under the shadow of a supreme leader who dictates key decisions, and cunning politicians maneuvering for power, the Iranian presidency has over the past two years been reduced to little more than administering the edicts imposed from above. — Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 12 June 2026 My worry is edicts from Hartford. — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 28 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for edicts
  1. decrees
  2. instructions
  3. rulings
  4. directives
  5. decisions
  6. orders
  7. directions
  8. injunctions
Noun
  • Since taking over, the Taliban have issued dozens of decrees that prohibit women from higher education, most forms of employment and political and even public participation.
    — Ruchi Kumar, NPR, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Iran is determined to smother any internal unrest Rezaei’s appointment came in a recent set of decrees by the supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, that formally set Iran’s new senior leadership, including top military posts.
    — Lee Keath, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of decrees
Noun
  • How could lay people, in light of these instructions, come to a unanimous conclusion as to what Clancy was thinking?
    — Richard E. Vatz, Baltimore Sun, 6 Sep. 2026
  • The Moon squares structured Saturn, making unclear emails, shifting responsibilities, or poorly explained instructions especially frustrating.
    — Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of instructions
Noun
  • There were legislative victories, landmark court rulings, and growing attention to the cause.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The justices did not give their reasoning for blocking the new map, as is often the case in rulings on its emergency docket.
    — Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of rulings
Noun
  • The president has signed directives to change the names of geographic areas including the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America and, more recently, Lake Ontario to Lake of America.
    — Melina Khan, USA Today, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Conflicting directives To some extent, the Spanish government has been forced to act slowly.
    — Colette Davidson, Christian Science Monitor, 13 Sep. 2026
Definition of directives
Noun
  • The move is the first in a string of major central bank decisions this week, with the Bank of England up next, and followed by the Bank of Japan on Friday.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2026
  • But in the rush to improve efficiency through cognitive offloading, many leaders have failed to distinguish between tasks that can be automated versus decisions that require human judgment.
    — Kelly Huang, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of decisions
Noun
  • At the previous race in Zandvoort last month, Ferrari didn’t issue team orders to swap its drivers at a critical late moment, where Leclerc was leading Hamilton but the Briton was faster on a different tire strategy.
    — Madeline Coleman, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Puroway If all goes to plan, orders are slated to ship worldwide in November, and delivery costs will be confirmed based on your region once the campaign ends ($8 per order in the US and EU).
    — Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of orders
Noun
  • But Gleb is being pulled in other directions at the same time, under political pressure to help the mounting war effort.
    — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The carriers join Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk who have separately announced an expansion of their trans-Suez routing on both directions via six services since the summer.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of directions
Noun
  • Others, like soul singer Isaac Hayes's estate, have won injunctions to stop their music being played at Trump rallies.
    — Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2026
  • The whistleblower also alleges that the administration moved forward with steps to create the new system during two initial injunctions from the court, which would have violated the court’s order.
    — Jen Fifield, ProPublica, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of injunctions

Browse Nearby Words

edict
edicts
edification
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Edicts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/edicts. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of watershed

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All