statute

American  

[stach-oot, -oot] / ˈstætʃ ut, -ʊt /

noun

• statutes
  plural

1. Law.

   1. 

      an enactment made by a legislature and expressed in a formal document.

   2. the document in which such an enactment is expressed.

2. International Law. an instrument annexed or subsidiary to an international agreement, as a treaty.

3. a permanent rule established by an organization, corporation, etc., to govern its internal affairs.

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statute British  

/ ˈstætjuːt /

noun

1. 1. an enactment of a legislative body expressed in a formal document

   2. this document

2. a permanent rule made by a body or institution for the government of its internal affairs

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• statutes
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of statute

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English statut, from Old French estatut, from Late Latin statūtum, noun use of neuter of Latin statūtus “made to stand,” past participle of statuere “to make stand, set up,” verb derivative of status status

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Explanation

A statute is a formal law or rule. Whether it's enacted by a government, company, or other organization, a statute is typically written down. Local governments can pass all kinds of statutes, or written laws, to govern their citizens. A city's government might try to restrict the consumption of alcoholic beverages in public, or make it illegal to pet cats on the weekends. Of course, silly statutes like no cat-petting on weekends can be pretty hard to pass.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

statute statutes

The judge also said that France's statute of limitations would apply in the case: normally three months in defamation cases, with a possible extension of up to one year in special cases.

From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2026

Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner told the BBC that the case may have exceeded the 10-year statute of limitations, giving the motion to dismiss the charges "a very good chance of being granted".

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

On Dec. 23, the Justices adopted a celebrated Georgetown scholar’s academic reading of the statute, saying it only allowed the president to commandeer national guard troops if the situation had already outmatched the standing army.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

Find out about the statute of limitations for contesting a will and whether this one had a no-contest clause.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 20, 2026

Between the passage of Alabama's new death penalty statute in 1975 and the end of 1988, there had been only three executions in Alabama.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Johnson argues that in doing so, Congress did not eliminate district court jurisdiction over constitutional challenges to the statutes themselves.

From Slate ● Oct. 19, 2026

A child protection bill was introduced in 2021 amending multiple statutes with the stated aim of cracking down on paedophilia.

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

The complaint alleges violations of both federal and state antitrust statutes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

At that point Ceferin, who was initially elected in 2016, was embroiled in a row over Uefa changing its statutes to allow him to serve for a fourth term.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

State legislatures enacted harsh new punishments for crimes, naming statutes after particular victims.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

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Related Words

• act
• bill
• decree
• edict
• measure
• regulation

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