Other forms: rulings
A ruling is the decision a judge hands down. A court ruling, appeal the ruling, the ruling stands.
It settles a point in a case, and a ruling from a high enough court becomes a precedent binding on lower ones — which is how case law is built. Ruling is used for decisions of referees and officials too. As an adjective, ruling means holding power: the ruling party, the ruling class. Note that a ruling decides a question and a verdict decides guilt, which are not the same thing.
1nounrulingThe decision a judge hands down.
“The court's ruling means the factory must close.”
2adjectiveholdingHolding power.
“The ruling party has been in power for twenty years.”
ruling is a decision, or holding power.
Proto-Indo-European
*h₃reǵ-
Proto-Indo-European
*h₃réǵeti — to straighten; right
Latin
regula — straight stick, bar, ruler, pattern
Old French
riule
Middle English
reule
English
rule
English, today
ruling
Built from
by surface analysis, rule + -ing. rule comes from Middle English reule, rewle, rule, borrowed from Old French riule, reule, from Latin regula (“straight stick, bar, ruler, pattern”), from regō (“to keep straight, direct, govern, rule”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₃réǵeti (“to straighten; right”), from the root h₃reǵ-; see regent. a doublet of rail and regal#Noun and regula and rigol.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA