officially make something into law

enact

verb|/ɪˈnækt/

To make a proposal into law or put a decision into effect

Examples

In a meeting

The board voted to enact the new employee protection policies immediately.

Over coffee

When will they actually enact the smoking ban?

Why this word

pass

enact specifically means to make into law, while pass can refer to any stage of legislative approval

implement

enact means to formally establish as law, while implement means to put existing policy into practice

create

enact has specific legal connotations of official adoption, while create is generic

Usage tip

Use for making laws official or putting formal decisions into practice. Stronger and more formal than 'implement.'

Etymology

Latin 'in-' (in) + 'actum' (done) — to make into action

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