as in rule
a statement spelling out the proper procedure or conduct for an activity
before the debate begins, let's lay out some ground rules
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Recent Examples of ground rule
Be aware that this is not the day to lay down ground rules or agree to anything important.
—
Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 27 Aug. 2025
There won’t be a bottom until Americans resurrect some ground rules and enforce them against any violators (even on their own side).
—Steven Greenhut, Oc Register, 22 Aug. 2025
The first might have cost the Padres a run as Luis Arraez followed with a ground rule double.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Aug. 2025
Over those first several hours of talks, the dictator laid down some ground rules for the resumption of the dialogue between the U.S. and Belarus.
—Simon Shuster, Time, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ground rule
Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 27 Aug. 2025
There won’t be a bottom until Americans resurrect some ground rules and enforce them against any violators (even on their own side).
—Steven Greenhut, Oc Register, 22 Aug. 2025
The first might have cost the Padres a run as Luis Arraez followed with a ground rule double.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Aug. 2025
Over those first several hours of talks, the dictator laid down some ground rules for the resumption of the dialogue between the U.S. and Belarus.
—Simon Shuster, Time, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ground rule
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ground rule
Noun
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See rules for Competitive Wordle toward the end of this post.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
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The Spanish competition’s salary limit rules basically set the amount of money teams are allowed to spend on player’s wages.—
Pol Ballús,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
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This was a week dedicated to the passage of several bills that would ease regulations on prominent appliances.—
Jeremy Lott,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
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Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin framed the new steps as a move to end burdensome regulations.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The flag code states that the flag should fly at half-staff for 30 days following the death of a current or former president and 10 days for the death of death of the Vice President, the Chief Justice or a retired Chief Justice of the United States, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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In data science, it is applied to develop and implement robust error-correcting codes for data storage and transmission.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The grants were allocated under President Joe Biden's signature Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, an anti-gun violence law signed after the mass school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.—
Oren Oppenheim,
ABC News,
9 Sep. 2025
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Aside from his signature 2021 criminal justice bill, Cooper signed legislation into law in 2020, allowing judges to reduce mandatory minimum sentences mandated by law for drug offenders.—
Emily Hallas,
The Washington Examiner,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ground rule.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ground%20rule. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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