Definition of MANDATE

mandate

Meanings

Plural: mandates

Noun

  • a document giving an official instruction or command
  • a territory surrendered by Turkey or Germany after World War I and put under the tutelage of some other European power until they are able to stand by themselves
  • the commission that is given to a government and its policies through an electoral victory
  • An official or authoritative command; an order or injunction; a commission; a judicial precept; an authorization.
  • The order or authority to do something, as granted to a politician by the electorate.
  • A period during which a government is in power.
  • An order by the League of Nations to a member nation to establish a government responsible for a conquered territory, as the colonies of Germany after World War I.
  • An order by the League of Nations to a member nation to establish a government responsible for a conquered territory, as the colonies of Germany after World War I.
  • Such a territory.
  • Alternative form of man date: a date between two men.

Verb

  • assign under a mandate
    • "mandate a colony"
  • make mandatory
    • "the new director of the school board mandated regular tests"
  • assign authority to
  • To (officially) require someone to do something or act in a certain way, to give them the authority to do so; to command.
  • To make mandatory.
  • To administer or assign a territory to a nation under a mandate.
  • To repeat, rehearse sermons or speeches aloud.

Origin / Etymology

First attested in 1521; borrowed from Latin mandātum (“a charge, order, command, commission, injunction”), substantivized from the neuter forms of mandātus, perfect passive participle of mandō (“to commit to one's charge, order, command, commission, literally to put into one's hands”) (see -ate (noun-forming suffix)), from manus (“hand”) + -dere (“to put”).
Sense 3 in Canadian English is likely a semantic loan from French mandat.

Scrabble Score: 10

mandate is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
mandate is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
mandate is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 12

mandate is a valid Words With Friends word