decree
Americannoun
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decrees
plural
-
a formal and authoritative order, especially one having the force of law.
a presidential decree.
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Law. a judicial decision or order.
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Theology. one of the eternal purposes of God, by which events are foreordained.
verb (used with or without object)
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decrees,
present (3rd person singular)
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decreed,
past participle, past
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decreeing
present participle
noun
-
an edict, law, etc, made by someone in authority
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an order or judgment of a court made after hearing a suit, esp in matrimonial proceedings See decree nisi decree absolute
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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decreernoun
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predecreeverb (used with object)
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decreeableadjective
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undecreedadjective
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well-decreedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
decreesimple
-
decreessimple
-
have decreedperfect
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has decreedperfect
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am decreeingprogressive
-
are decreeingprogressive
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is decreeingprogressive
-
have been decreeingperfect progressive
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has been decreeingperfect progressive
Past
-
decreedsimple
-
had decreedperfect
-
was decreeingprogressive
-
were decreeingprogressive
-
had been decreeingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of decree
1275–1325; (noun) Middle English decre < Anglo-French decre, decret < Latin dēcrētum, noun use of neuter of dēcrētus, past participle of dēcernere; see decern; (v.) Middle English decreen, derivative of the noun
Explanation
Look carefully! A decree isn't something you get when you graduate. That one little letter change makes it something else altogether: a legally binding command or the announcement of such a thing. If you go back far enough, a decree referred to a decision handed down by the Roman emperor. In more modern usage, a divorce decree is the document issued by a court that terminates a marriage. And if you want to go out with someone on a date, but things keep preventing you from having the chance to ask, you could say that fate did not decree it to be so.
Vocabulary lists containing decree
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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:
But both elections will now be held on September 11, 2027, Abbas said in a decree, blaming Israeli "obstacles", according to the Palestinian official news agency Wafa.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
Sánchez's ruling coalition hurriedly drew up the decree laws in an effort to defuse the housing protests that were sparked when 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal was evicted in September.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
MPs rejected the first decree by 178 votes to 172 and voted against the second by 184 to 166.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
The decree commits the merged studio to release 30 movies in each of the first two years of the deal, and 32 in each of the following three years.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
On December 22 the chairman of the California Horse Racing Commission gathered reporters together and issued the board’s decree: Red Pollard was banned from riding all horses, including stakes mounts, until January 1,1938.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
But, to the distress of his advisers, he is the most reluctant of monarchs, unwilling to wage war, issue decrees or even, many days, get out of bed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
During his nearly 60-day period abroad so far, he has signed several other decrees, including some authorising his government to sign loan agreements with international financial institutions.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
But consent decrees are legally and politically complicated, and the treatment of migrant children further tangles the situation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Max Mathiasin, a lawmaker from the former colony turned overseas territory of Guadeloupe who is championing the bill, last week said repealing the decrees would be a "powerful symbolic and political gesture".
From Barron's ● May 28, 2026
From the first day of his rule Arcadio revealed his predilection for decrees.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The fates, and fixture list, decreed it would be at Liverpool, whose fans nurse the most burning sense of injustice after finishing second to City in 2013-14, 2018-19 and 2021-22.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
For decades, China's Communist Party decreed that couples could have only one child.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Tina Peters deserved to go to jail but not for nine years, a panel of judges decreed, ordering her resentencing.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2026
"Any person or entity that challenges the public order decreed by the transitional authorities will be severely reprimanded, in compliance with the law," the statement said.
From Barron's ● Jan. 9, 2026
It is a waste of time and energy But still, the king officially decreed that all rats in the Kingdom of Dor were outlaws and should be treated as such.
From "The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup and a Spool of Thread" by Kate DiCamillo
The second scenario is that they are expelled by the Premier League, which would require 15 of their rival clubs to vote in favour of a motion decreeing so.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
It is roughly analogous to a disgruntled DMV employee refusing to process your driver’s license renewal paperwork, and also unilaterally decreeing that you were never allowed to operate a motor vehicle in the first place.
From Slate ● Nov. 21, 2023
One resident, Gulnaz Gilmanova, wrote that she was ashamed of the village administration for decreeing that he be buried without military honors.
From New York Times ● Mar. 26, 2023
Any papal document would likely take the form of an Apostolic Constitution decreeing changes in Church law.
From Reuters ● Aug. 22, 2022
Nothing could be more straightforward—except we never talk about finding, making or decreeing facts; instead, we ‘establish facts’.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
