regulate
verb (used with object)
to control or direct by a rule, principle, method, etc..
had been regulating
-
past perfect progressiveof regulate.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
During her campaign, Wu made enemies of the government bureaucrats who had been regulating recycling.
From Time Magazine Archive
Spelling had been rather a mysterious art, but Mr. Dilworth, and now Mr. Noah Webster, had been regulating it according to a system.
From A Little Girl in Old Boston by Amanda Minnie Douglas
Even during his absence they had been regulating their lives by his minute instructions, and depending upon him for guidance after he should return.
From The Big Brother A Story of Indian War by George Cary Eggleston
