legislation

American  

[lej-is-lay-shuhn] / ˌlɛdʒ ɪsˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

• legislations
  plural

1. the act of making or enacting laws.

2. a law or a body of laws enacted.

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legislation British  

/ ˌlɛdʒɪsˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of making laws; enactment

2. the laws so made

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sublegislation
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• legislations
  plural

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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

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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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

legislation legislations

Maryland passed legislation this year requiring prices on electronic shelf labels at grocery stores to remain fixed for at least one business day and prohibiting stores from using customer data to set individualized prices.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026

This legislation requires the “humane disposition of carriage horses” and prohibits their sale for slaughter or for use in another horse-drawn-carriage business.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

His campaign touts his record as chair of the affordability-focused Congressional Renters Caucus and his support for proposed legislation that seeks to lower housing costs, expand supply and strengthen pathways to ownership.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

Northern Ireland was the last part of these islands to adopt climate change legislation, which brought in legally-binding targets for reducing emissions.

From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026

“We would not sacrifice a child before we charge somebody,” said Representative Paul Ray, a Republican who was the legislator who had proposed the second, stricter, piece of legislation banning texting while driving.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Ms Khalaf said the sentence handed to Tiba's father was "unfair", and that she saw such cases as evidence of "provisions and legislations that violate women's rights".

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 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

I think it discredits those who pass these legislations, those who adopt them and those who implement them more than anything else.

From US News ● Dec. 21, 2015

If I call them separately, it is in accordance with the thought inspiring two works, two legislations, two religions, on which they want to found the Catholic Religion.

From The Story of the Philippines and Our New Possessions, Including the Ladrones, Hawaii, Cuba and Porto Rico The Eldorado of the Orient by Murat Halstead

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Related Words

• act
• bill
• charter
• constitution
• measure
• regulation
• ruling
• statute

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