self-regulation

American  

[self-reg-yuh-ley-shuhn, self-] / ˌsɛlfˌrɛg yəˈleɪ ʃən, ˌsɛlf- /

noun

1. control by oneself or itself, as in an economy, business organization, etc., especially such control as exercised independently of governmental supervision, laws, or the like.

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Etymology

Origin of self-regulation

First recorded in 1685–95

Example Sentences

Despite another two-plus centuries of self-regulation and government regulation, the line between honest men and knaves on Wall Street remains fluid.

From Barron's • Mar. 1, 2026

Monitoring the brain’s self-regulation and maintenance functions, like this fluid flushing, are opportunities for new diagnostic tools and avenues for treatment, Nedergaard said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 13, 2026

She said regular police would enforce the ban but also added that she was a great believer in the "self-regulation".

From BBC • May 29, 2025

Bogotá’s unorthodox mayor, Antanas Mockus—who rose to fame after mooning student protesters and deployed mimes to control traffic—viewed the activity as a gambit “to achieve self-regulation in the behavior among citizens.”

From Slate • Dec. 22, 2024

There must be added, not as being itself a component, but rather as a mode or peculiar property of all functioning, the omnipresent faculty of self-regulation.

From Form and Function A Contribution to the History of Animal Morphology by E. S. (Edward Stuart) Russell