directive

UK/daɪˈɹɛk.tɪv/US/dəˈɹɛk.tɪv/

nounB2+Common in everyday speech and writing · #6,299 of 15,258leans written

Other forms: directives

A directive is an official instruction telling people what to do. Issue a directive, an EU directive, follow the directive.

In European law a directive sets a result each member state must achieve while leaving the method to them, which is what distinguishes it from a regulation. In an organisation it is a formal instruction rather than advice, and it is expected to be obeyed.

Definitions of directive

1noundirectiveAn official instruction telling people what to do.B2+
“Head office sent out a directive telling all staff to wear name badges.”

directive is an instruction.

Where it comes from

Middle French directif comes from Latin dirigere, to direct — di plus regere, to guide.

French
directive
Middle French
directif
English, today
directive

From Middle French directif. The noun senses are from French directive (feminine form of the adjective).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

directive in the wild

A living will is one form of advance directive, leaving instructions for treatment.
Advance healthcare directive
The RoHS 1 directive took effect on 1 July 2006, and is required to be enforced and became a law in each member state.
RoHS
For a date based list, see the Category:European Union directives by number.
List of European Union directives
Some older directives had an ordinal number in their name, for instance: "First Council Directive 73/239/EEC".
List of European Union directives
The Habitats Directive is a directive adopted by the European Community in 1992 as a response to the Berne Convention.
Habitats Directive

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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