Definition

The legitimate right to command obedience, enforce rules, and generally tell people what to do—whether earned through expertise, position, or gunpower. The opposite of 'suggestions.'

Example Usage

The health authority mandated new sanitation standards for all restaurants in the region.

Source: Merriam-Webster via Free Dictionary API

Related Terms

Intermediate

omnibus bill

A massive piece of legislation that combines multiple bills into one enormous package, often thousands of pages long. The legislative equivalent of hiding your vegetables in a smoothie, except the vegetables are controversial provisions nobody would pass on their own.

🏛️ Government / Politics
Intermediate

October surprise

A news event or revelation deliberately timed to drop shortly before an election to maximize impact and minimize response time. Democracy's ambush marketing strategy.

🏛️ Government / Politics
Intermediate

vote trading

When legislators exchange votes on different issues—'I'll support your bridge if you support my tax break'—to build coalitions. It's the legislative equivalent of bartering, and about as efficient as medieval marketplaces.

🏛️ Government / Politics
Advanced

daddy

A familial reference to George Bush Sr., used primarily during his son's presidency to distinguish between the two Bush administrations. Because nothing says 'political dynasty' quite like needing to specify which Bush you're talking about.

🏛️ Government / Politics
Advanced

3 percenters

A far-right anti-government militia movement in North America characterized by libertarian ideology and armed resistance rhetoric—definitely more news category than slang.

🏛️ Government / Politics
Advanced

impoundment

When the executive branch refuses to spend money that Congress has appropriated. Presidential penny-pinching that led to a constitutional crisis in the 1970s and resulted in Congress finally saying "we meant spend it."

🏛️ Government / Politics

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congener

A biological or chemical cousin—something that belongs to the same family or genus as another. Used primarily by scien...