federalize

verb

fed·​er·​al·​ize ˈfe-d(ə-)rə-ˌlīz How to pronounce federalize (audio)
federalized; federalizing

transitive verb

1
: to unite in or under a federal system
2
: to bring under the jurisdiction of a federal government

Examples of federalize in a Sentence

The measure federalizes several state programs.
Recent Examples on the Web The No Fakes Act essentially federalizes likeness laws, which vary from state to state. Emilia David, The Verge, 12 Oct. 2023 The Supreme Court will likely consider the act in coming years, and Chief Justice John Roberts has questioned the scope of presidential power to federalize millions of acres of land. The Editors, National Review, 9 Aug. 2023 When the governor of Arkansas, Orval Faubus, called on the state’s National Guard to prevent nine Black students from entering Central High School, in Little Rock, Eisenhower, after agonizing privately, federalized the Guard and sent in the 101st Airborne, to insure the students’ safety. Louis Menand, The New Yorker, 31 July 2023 The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments rebuild the constitutional structure and especially the Fourteenth Amendment, try to federalize citizenship, which was not the case prior to that. How To Save A Country, The New Republic, 22 June 2023 The Insurrection Act is an 1807 law that allows the president to dispatch the military or federalize the National Guard in states that are unable to put down an insurrection or are defying federal law. Savannah Behrmann, USA TODAY, 7 June 2020 The Insurrection Act is an 1807 law that gives a president authority to federalize the National Guard to quell local rebellions, conspiracies and violence, offering a way around legal prohibitions against using military forces to enforce domestic laws. Jacqueline Alemany, Josh Dawsey and Tom Hamburger, Anchorage Daily News, 28 Apr. 2022 Justice knew the likely timing of the Court’s ruling in Brnovich v. DNC, so a fair guess is that Mr. Garland succumbed to White House and progressive pressure to make a political statement to support Democratic efforts in Congress to federalize state election laws in H.R.1. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 5 July 2021 Senator Hassan wanted to federalize elections. Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 14 Nov. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'federalize.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1801, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of federalize was in 1801

Dictionary Entries Near federalize

Cite this Entry

“Federalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/federalize. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

federalize

verb
fed·​er·​al·​ize ˈfed-(ə-)rə-ˌlīz How to pronounce federalize (audio)
federalized; federalizing
: to unite in or under a federal system of authority
federalization
ˌfed-(ə-)rə-lə-ˈzā-shən
noun
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