legislation
Americannoun
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the act of making or enacting laws.
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a law or a body of laws enacted.
noun
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the act or process of making laws; enactment
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the laws so made
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of legislation
1645–55; < Late Latin lēgislātiōn- (stem of lēgislātiō ), equivalent to Latin phrase lēgis lātiō the bringing (i.e., proposing) of a law, equivalent to lēgis (genitive of lēx law) + lātiō a bringing; see relation
Explanation
Legislation is the act or process of making or enacting laws. Some people think there should be more legislation in the area of education and some people think there should be less — governments debate the matter periodically. The noun legislation refers to the actual law enacted by a legislative body at the national, state, or local level. There has been some very odd legislation over the years. In one state it was illegal to kiss on a train; in another, it was illegal to take a bath on Sunday. The sweeping legislation made radical changes to tax law, health care, and immigration law.
Vocabulary lists containing legislation
Election Lingo
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13th Amendment (1865)
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19th Amendment (1920)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Under legislation signed in 2018, all of California’s electricity is to come from clean sources by 2045.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
Holiday let owner says legislation will 'destroy me'
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
So, the question isn’t simply whether more legislation would pass.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
She’s a loyal House Democrat, a pragmatist more focused on legislation than spectacle.
From Slate ● Jul. 30, 2026
Meetings were banned; printing presses were seized; and legislation was rushed through Parliament permitting the police to detain charged prisoners for twelve days without bail.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
The Brazilian proposal is shaping up to be one of the world's strongest legislations on social media, comparable to the European Union's Digital Services Act enacted last year.
From Reuters ● May 2, 2023
That includes swearing in new members of Congress, and adopting new rules and legislations.
From BBC ● Jan. 4, 2023
“I made up my mind because I must not interfere with parliamentary discussion of key legislations because of my problems,” Terada said.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 20, 2022
Rep. Pramila Jayapal still has the confidence of the various factions of her party, as well as the White House, to negotiate some passable legislations.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 26, 2022
This utility is the principle of all human virtues, and the foundation of all legislations.
From Diderot and the Encyclopædists Volume II. by Morley, John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
