regulate

Pronunciation

• IPA ^(key): /ˈrɛɡjəleɪt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: re‧gu‧late

Verb

Plain form regulate

Third-person singular regulates

Past tense regulated

Past participle regulated

Present participle regulating

1. (transitive) If you regulate something, you control it by making laws and rules.

   The industry has fought the state's attempts to regulate it.

   The Coast Guard has direct authority to regulate U.S. sailors and port workers.

   The government is considering a law that would regulate the prices of drugs.

   The state maintains the power to regulate all schools.

2. (transitive) If $x$ regulates $y$, $x$ causes $y$ to function in a particular way, often at a higher or lower level.

   You turn this to regulate the water flow.

   This part of the brain regulates activities such as decision-making and memory.

Synonyms

• set
• control
• order
• adjust

Related words

• regulation
• regulator
• regulatory
• unregulated