rule

Definitions

1. noun

   An official instruction about what you must or must not do.

   Examples

   • All players must follow the rules.
   • You have to know the rules to enter the tournament.
2. noun

   A basic idea that guides how people act.

   Examples

   • The first rule of the club is to come on time.
   • There is a strict rule against phones in class.
3. noun

   The power to control a country or people.

   Examples

   • The country was under foreign rule for a century.
   • The king's strict rule made people afraid.
4. noun

   What usually happens.

   Examples

   • My rule is to get up at six o'clock.
   • As a rule, our senior editors are serious people.
5. noun

   A way someone chooses to behave.

   Examples

   • He lives by a simple rule of honesty.
   • She follows her own rule when it comes to spending.
6. noun

   A decision by a court about how a case must go.

   Examples

   • The judge issued a rule that both sides must appear.
   • The court made a rule about how to present the case.
7. noun

   A fixed method for doing something.

   Examples

   • Follow the rule for changing Celsius to Fahrenheit.
   • The recipe follows a simple rule of thirds.
8. noun

   In old-fashioned use, a ruler for measuring.

   Examples

   • The carpenter measured the board with a rule.
   • He drew a straight line using a rule.
9. noun

   A straight line drawn on paper.

   Examples

   • A straight rule guided the pen across the page.
   • The writer drew a rule under each entry.
10. noun

    In printing, a thin metal strip that prints a line.

    Examples

    • The rule between the columns kept the page neat.
    • A thin metal rule separated each part of the table.