mandate

[ man-deyt ]

/ ˈmæn deɪt /

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See synonyms for: mandate / mandated / mandates / mandating on Thesaurus.com

noun

a command or authorization to act in a particular way on a public issue given by the electorate to its representative: The president had a clear mandate to end the war.

a command from a superior court or official to a lower one: The appellate court resolved the appeal and issued a mandate to the district judge.

an authoritative order or command: a royal mandate.

(in the League of Nations) a commission given to a nation to administer the government and affairs of a former Turkish territory or German colony.

a mandated territory or colony.

Roman Catholic Church. an order issued by the pope, especially one commanding the preferment of a certain person to a benefice.

Roman and Civil Law. a contract by which one engages gratuitously to perform services for another.

(in modern civil law) any contract by which a person undertakes to perform services for another.

Roman Law. an order or decree by the emperor, especially to governors of provinces.

verb (used with object), man·dat·ed, man·dat·ing.

to authorize or decree (a particular action), as by the enactment of law: The state legislature mandated an increase in the minimum wage.

to order or require; make mandatory: to mandate sweeping changes in the election process.

to consign (a territory, colony, etc.) to the charge of a particular nation under a mandate.

OTHER WORDS FOR mandate

3 fiat, decree, injunction, edict, ruling.

See synonyms for mandate on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of mandate

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin mandātum, noun use of neuter of mandātus, past participle of mandāre “to commission,” literally, “to give into (someone's) hand”; equivalent to manus manus + -dere “to put” (combining form; see do¹).

historical usage of mandate

English mandate comes from Latin mandātum “an order, instruction, commission, imperial directive, (in law) a consensual contract.”
Mandātum is a neuter noun use of the past participle mandātus, from mandāre “to hand over, deliver, consign, entrust, delegate.” The first element of Latin mandāre is from the noun manus “hand”; the second part looks as if it were from dare “to give,” but in fact -dāre is a derivation of the combining form -dere “to put, place,” from a very widespread Proto-Indo-European root dhē-, dhō- “to place, set, put,” source of the English verb do. Mandāre therefore means “to put in the hands (of).”
Mandātum, via Old and Middle French mandé “washing of poor people’s feet during the Holy Thursday liturgy,” becomes maunde in Middle English and maundy in Modern English. Mandé, maunde, and maundy derive from the Vulgate Latin text of Jesus’ words during the Last Supper (Gospel of St. John, 13:34): Mandātum novum dō vōbis, ut diligātis invicem “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another.”

Words nearby mandate

Mandarin Chinese, mandarin collar, mandarin duck, mandarin orange, mandatary, mandate, mandated, mandator, mandatory, man-day, Mande

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mandate in a sentence

For instance, if members of Congress advocate for specific reforms like a new financial transaction tax or new mandates for regulators rather than just expressing their concerns, the issue could become more partisan.
What Americans Think About The GameStop Investors|Dhrumil Mehta (dhrumil.mehta@fivethirtyeight.com)|February 12, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
Day has been advocating for a local mask mandate, as seen in other cities and counties.
Despite Crackdown Announcement, Not Much COVID-19 Enforcement Is Happening|Jesse Marx|February 11, 2021|Voice of San Diego
In other posts, she mocked mask mandates to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Gina Carano is off ‘The Mandalorian’ over ‘abhorrent and unacceptable’ social media posts, Lucasfilm says|Timothy Bella|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
Three states — Iowa, North Dakota and Mississippi — have lifted such mandates.
Masks should fit better or be doubled up to protect against coronavirus variants, CDC says|Lena H. Sun, Fenit Nirappil|February 11, 2021|Washington Post

This was most likely due to public health mandates that required a shift away from in-person care.
One big hiccup in US efforts to distribute COVID-19 vaccines? Poor internet access.|By Tamra Burns Loeb, Et Al./The Conversation|February 10, 2021|Popular-Science
“This is a federal mandate that is causing some real problems for schools across the country,” Kline told a CBS affiliate in July.
The Republican War on Kale|Patricia Murphy|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Part of the problem is the mandate of the war and the means with which the U.S. is fighting it do not match up.
Pentagon Doesn’t Know How Many People It’s Killed in the ISIS War|Nancy A. Youssef|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
According to Schumer, Obama and his administration had misinterpreted their 2008 electoral mandate.
2016 Is No Democratic Slam Dunk|Lloyd Green|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And if the Little Sisters prevail, the entire contraception mandate falls.
RFRA Madness: What’s Next for Anti-Democratic ‘Religious Exemptions’|Jay Michaelson|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And to other parts of the Affordable Care Act, not just the so-called “contraception mandate.”
RFRA Madness: What’s Next for Anti-Democratic ‘Religious Exemptions’|Jay Michaelson|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
My crutch emphasized this mandate, but I could not see how it was received, for every scholar's face was hidden from me by a book.
The Soldier of the Valley|Nelson Lloyd
I suppose uncle's letter must be taken as a royal mandate, and that we must leave here at once.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume II (of 3)|Charles James Wills
The officers of the Lisbon troops talk loudly of his being obliged to do his duty, and obey the mandate of the Cortes.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil|Maria Graham
Having thus issued his mandate, the groom came forth from the stable.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 67, Number 414, April, 1850|Various
No necessity to answer him; make signs that you obey the sultan's mandate; you know how they do it.
Jack Harkaway's Boy Tinker Among The Turks|Bracebridge Hemyng

British Dictionary definitions for mandate

mandate

noun (ˈmændeɪt, -dɪt)

an official or authoritative instruction or command

politics the support or commission given to a government and its policies or an elected representative and his policies through an electoral victory

Also called: mandated territory (often capital) (formerly) any of the territories under the trusteeship of the League of Nations administered by one of its member states

Roman law a contract by which one person commissions another to act for him gratuitously and the other accepts the commission
contract law a contract of bailment under which the party entrusted with goods undertakes to perform gratuitously some service in respect of such goods
Scots law a contract by which a person is engaged to act in the management of the affairs of another

verb (ˈmændeɪt) (tr)

international law to assign (territory) to a nation under a mandate

to delegate authority to

obsolete to give a command to

Derived forms of mandate

mandator, noun

Word Origin for mandate

C16: from Latin mandātum something commanded, from mandāre to command, perhaps from manus hand + dāre to give

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

Cultural definitions for mandate

mandate

A command or an expression of a desire, especially by a group of voters for a political program. Politicians elected in landslide victories often claim that their policies have received a mandate from the voters.

mandate

OTHER WORDS FOR mandate

Origin of mandate

historical usage of mandate

Words nearby mandate

Words related to mandate

How to use mandate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mandate

Derived forms of mandate

Word Origin for mandate

Cultural definitions for mandate