Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

institute

[in-sti-toot, -tyoot]
verb (used with object), in·sti·tut·ed, in·sti·tut·ing.
  1. to set up; establish; organize: to institute a government.
  2. to inaugurate; initiate; start: to institute a new course in American literature.
  3. to set in operation: to institute a lawsuit.
  4. to bring into use or practice: to institute laws.
  5. to establish in an office or position.
  6. Ecclesiastical. to assign to or invest with a spiritual charge, as of a parish.
Show More
noun
  1. a society or organization for carrying on a particular work, as of a literary, scientific, or educational character.
  2. the building occupied by such a society.
  3. Education.
    1. an institution, generally beyond the secondary school level, devoted to instruction in technical subjects, usually separate but sometimes organized as a part of a university.
    2. a unit within a university organized for advanced instruction and research in a relatively narrow field of subject matter.
    3. a short instructional program set up for a special group interested in a specialized field or subject.
  4. an established principle, law, custom, or organization.
  5. institutes,
    1. an elementary textbook of law designed for beginners.
    2. (initial capital letter)Also called Institutes of Justinian.an elementary treatise on Roman law in four books, forming one of the four divisions of the Corpus Juris Civilis.
  6. something instituted.
Show More

Origin of institute

1275–1325; Middle English < Latin institūtus past participle of instituere to set, put up, establish, equivalent to in- in-2 + -stitū- (combining form of statū-, stem of statuere to make stand) + -tus past participle suffix
Related formsre·in·sti·tute, verb (used with object), re·in·sti·tut·ed, re·in·sti·tut·ing.un·in·sti·tut·ed, adjectivewell-in·sti·tut·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

academyassociationasylumbusinesscliniccollegecompanyconservatoryestablishmentfixturefoundationguildhospitalschoolseminarsocietysystemuniversityorphanageseminary

Examples from the Web for institutes

Historical Examples

  • It was thus that the Institutes of Calvin became one of the charters of democracy.

    The American Mind

    Bliss Perry

  • He offers sacrifices; he institutes ceremonies and observances.

    Bunyan

    James Anthony Froude

  • They manage things better at the museums and the institutes.

  • As an educator she began her public work at teachers' institutes.

    Two Decades

    Frances W. Graham and Georgeanna M. Gardenier

  • I had not imagined that the institutes of Calvin were still a serious 248 matter.

British Dictionary definitions for institutes

institutes

pl n
  1. a digest or summary, esp of laws
Show More

Institutes

pl n
  1. an introduction to legal study in ancient Rome, compiled by order of Justinian and divided into four books forming part of the Corpus Juris Civilis
  2. short for Institutes of the Christian Religion, the book by Calvin, completed in 1536 and constituting the basic statement of the Reformed faith, that repudiates papal authority and postulates the doctrines of justification by faith alone and predestination
Show More

institute

verb (tr)
  1. to organize; establish
  2. to initiateto institute a practice
  3. to establish in a position or office; induct
  4. (foll by in or into) to install (a clergyman) in a church
Show More
noun
  1. an organization founded for particular work, such as education, promotion of the arts, or scientific research
  2. the building where such an organization is situated
  3. something instituted, esp a rule, custom, or precedent
Show More
Derived Formsinstitutor or instituter, noun

Word Origin

C16: from Latin instituere, from statuere to place, stand
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for institutes

institute

n.

1510s, "purpose, design," from institute (v.). From 1540s as "an established law." The sense of "organization, society" is from 1828, borrowed from French Institut national des Sciences et des Arts, established 1795 to replace the royal academies, from Latin institutum, neuter past participle of instituere.

Show More

institute

v.

early 14c., "to establish in office, appoint," from Latin institutus, past participle of instituere "to set up," from in- "in" (see in- (2)) + statuere "establish, to cause to stand," from PIE root *sta- "to stand," with derivatives meaning "place or thing that is standing" (see stet). General sense of "set up, found, introduce" first attested late 15c. Related: Instituted; instituting.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper