Etymologically
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regulation

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 03:11. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˌreɡ.jəˈleɪ.ʃən/, /ˌreɡ.jʊˈleɪ.ʃən/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from regulate and -ation.[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The act of regulating, or the state of being reduced to order: 1672 in the OED, the 1670s in Etymonline.[5][2] MWU dates it to 1611.[4]

Semantic evolution

A rule prescribed by an authority is from before 1715.[5][2] As an adjective, according to a rule or standard, as in regulation dress, it is from 1836.[5][2] In biology, the ability of an organism or embryo to adapt its form, it is from 1902,[5] and in electricity, the degree to which an apparatus keeps its output steady, from 1899.[5]

Timeline

  • 1672 – the act of regulating.[5]
  • 1715 – a rule.[5]
  • 1836 – the adjective.[5]
  • 1902 – in biology.[5]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. An official rule made by a government or other authority.
  2. The control of something by rules.

Adjective

  1. Following an official rule or standard: regulation uniform.

Word family

  • self-regulation
  • thermoregulation
  • autoregulation
  • nonregulation
  • osmoregulation
  • overregulation
  • regulate
  • regulator
  • deregulation
  • regular

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press