edict

Edict, n.

Etymology: [L. edictum, fr. edicere, edictum, to declare, proclaim; e out + dicere to say: cf. F. édit. See Diction.]

A public command or ordinance by the sovereign power; the proclamation of a law made by an absolute authority, as if by the very act of announcement; a decree; as, the edicts of the Roman emperors; the edicts of the French monarch. It stands as an edict in destiny. Shak. Edict of Nantes (French Hist.), an edict issued by Henry IV. (A. D. 1598), giving toleration to Protestants. Its revocation by Louis XIV. (A. D. 1685) was followed by terrible persecutions and the expatriation of thousands of French Protestants.

Syn. -- Decree; proclamation; law; ordinance; statute; rule; order; manifesti; command. See Law.

Shades of meaning

Fernald has no entry of its own for edict; he lists it under law.

Where he writes about it:

An edict is the act of an absolute sovereign or other authority; we speak of the edict of an emperor, the decree of a court. — from law

Synonyms

law canon code command commandment decree economy enactment formula jurisprudence legislation mandate order ordinance polity principle regulation rule statute

Antonyms

none given

etymology Webster’s online