ordains

verb

present tense third-person singular of ordain
1
as in destines
to determine the fate of in advance he is stoic in the face of adversity, bolstered by his faith that everything in life has been ordained by a higher power

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in orders
to request the doing of by virtue of one's authority a new bill that would ordain the funding of public schools through state lottery revenues

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in enacts
to put into effect through legislative or authoritative action the founders of the African republic ordained a form of government that was closely modeled on that of the United States

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 ordains And one of the tenets of that faith is that God ordains everything. — Scott Pelley, CBS News, 26 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ordains
  1. dooms
  2. orders
  3. enacts
  4. dictates
  5. passes
  6. requests
Verb
  • Fans continue to ask Carney about Hadestown’s climactic moment, when Orpheus dooms Eurydice forever by turning to look at her on the road back from hell.
    — Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 23 July 2026
  • This dooms the kingdom to the tyrannical rule of the villainous Priscilla (Nikki Glaser), who swoops in and snatches the throne.
    — Kevin Giraud, Variety, 23 June 2026
Definition of dooms
Verb
  • In the book, Rhaenyra also orders that Nettles be imprisoned, but Daemon, who is suspected of being Nettles’s lover, lets her escape.
    — James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Suddenly powering down after an officer orders you to hand over the device could raise questions about your intent.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of orders
Verb
  • The leader who takes bodyful ownership of their life and enacts disciplined practices to sense its rhythms will not only enjoy greater harmony and wellbeing but bring greater coherence to their work and to their world.
    — Ginny Whitelaw, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
  • On just one unchanging set, an old-time concert hall designed by Rachel Hauck and made appropriately ominous, a tiny ensemble enacts a whole Greek tragedy of love and sacrifice that goes from the land of the living to the underworld and back.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 22 July 2026
Definition of enacts
Verb
  • The data, Manfred says, already dictates the results of this postseason.
    — Barry M. Bloom, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
  • All this does is strengthen a tired argument that has existed in baseball since the ‘90s; that market size dictates the winners.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of dictates
Verb
  • But once the residence passes building inspection, the homeowner could enclose the underneath space, creating a ground-level story.
    — Adam Van Brimmer, AJC.com, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Both passes deflected off a player, the first off WR Terrace Marshall and the second off WR Tutu Atwell.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of passes
Verb
  • The lawsuit requests damages of $10 million for past and future physical injuries, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life.
    — Madison Lambert, NBC news, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The company requests a 10-year, 80% property tax phase-in for each of its three new buildings, and the developer would make an annual payment in lieu of taxes contribution.
    — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of requests

Browse Nearby Words

ordaining
ordains
ordeal
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ordains.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ordains. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on ordains

Nglish: Translation of ordains for Spanish Speakers

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 salvo

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

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

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
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
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All