MANDATES Synonyms: 29 Similar and Opposite Words

mandates 1 of 2

noun

plural of mandate

as in accreditations

the granting of power to perform various acts or duties the committee has been given a mandate to reform the process for admitting applicants to the university

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mandates

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of mandate

as in orders

to request the doing of by virtue of one's authority the president of the sports league has mandated drug testing for all active members

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of mandates

Noun

There is just the slow hiss and sigh of the machines, tucked safely out of sight, as social media filled with resistance to mask mandates, to empathy and authority, to the power of the state, and the chorus of anti-vaxxers grew. — Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026 The Academy of Pediatrics says decisions about gender affirming care should be made by patients and physicians, not government mandates. — Shaun Boyd, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 The mandates coincided with a Barack Obama-era plan to end family homelessness by 2020. — Nicole Santa Cruz, ProPublica, 9 Oct. 2026 Instead, Nvidia focuses on improving work-life balance and has maintained a hybrid work programme, without strict return-to-office mandates. — Tamlin Magee, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026 Berkowicz, 65, opposes Illinois’ sanctuary-state law and believes the state imposes too many mandates on localities. — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026 Twenty-three states have no rating from the big agencies at all, which locks them out of mandates that require one. — Tiisetso Motsoeneng, semafor.com, 7 Oct. 2026 Slashing oil industry regulations and clean energy mandates for utility companies to achieve $3 gas and lower electric bills. — Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026 Payments got mandates first because card networks price fraud by the basis point. — Michael Riedl, Forbes.com, 6 Oct. 2026

Verb

The Minneapolis City Council approved an ordinance earlier this month that mandates a human monitor in driverless cars. — Reg Chapman, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026 For one, the law mandates that states adopt intensive new work requirements for older adults and others, resulting in voluminous additional monthly paperwork. — Eli Hager, ProPublica, 13 Oct. 2026 Effective since January 2024, the program mandates that foreign companies must establish their regional HQ in the kingdom to compete for and secure many Saudi government contracts, including from the PIF. — Melissa Hancock, Fortune, 30 Sep. 2026 The pending rule requires medicines mailed from abroad to go through a customs process that mandates a licensed customs broker and a financial guarantee in the form of an entry bond. — Ed Silverman, STAT, 29 Sep. 2026 The Paramount settlement, which mandates that at least 20% of the company’s annual releases be tentpole films, defines that category as a film with a budget of at least $50 million. — Sarah Whitten, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026 The House will vote on legislation that mandates the Supreme Court be composed of nine justices. — Adam Beam, AJC.com, 2 Sep. 2026 Timothy is charged with murder — an offense that typically mandates a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole — therefore the judge is required to hold a Miller hearing before sentencing in the case. — Chris Spargo, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026 One is a 170-page bill that significantly changes juvenile justice procedures, mandates the amount of time served until someone becomes eligible for parole and allows counties to raise a 1% sales tax to fund a juvenile detention center. — Jack Harvel august 26, Kansas City Star, 26 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mandates

Noun

Originating in the United States, this is one of the oldest accreditations globally, known for rigorous standards in faculty and curriculum quality.

— Habib Al Souleiman, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026
This year’s 2,140 industry accreditations were up 10 percent from last year’s 1,940.

— Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of accreditations

Verb

According to the lawsuit, Thomas frequently visits McDonald’s and orders a Quarter Pounder with cheese, fries and a Coke.

— Dee-Ann Durbin, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
According to the lawsuit, Thomas frequently visits McDonald’s and orders a Quarter Pounder with cheese, french fries and a Coke.

— ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of orders

Noun

General guidance from the federal government states that HIPAA authorizations do not need to be notarized.

— Alex Rosenblat — CalMatters, STAT, 15 Oct. 2026
Americans are stuck in an endless loop of prior authorizations, high deductibles, and coverage denials while hospital systems across the country are barely scraping by.

— WCCO Staff, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of authorizations

Noun

The legislation, which would have begun scaling back licenses for the occupation, was stalled in 2025.

— Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
The International Seabed Authority has granted 17 exploration licenses in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, with five held by China, whose researchers conducted this viral survey.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of licenses

Verb

Though, of course, because Larry is Larry (and therefore governed by a peculiar physics that dictates that every step forward be followed by two in reverse), his year at SNL would prove to be far from a rosy adventure.

— Blake J. Harris, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
Your appearance dictates much of how people treat and respond to you.

— Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of dictates

Noun

But hats off to Jay Hunt at Apple, because so much is down to having the faith to do those double commissions from the off.

— Alex Ritman, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
But agency heads, especially those who sit on bipartisan boards or commissions, cannot completely ignore Democratic lawmakers, and may move cautiously on very contentious issues, said executives.

— Reuters, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of commissions

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“Mandates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mandates. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of mandates

noun

verb

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