Regulating

How to spell regulating

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce regulating

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does regulating mean?

1. verbControlling or maintaining something by rules, standards, or steady adjustment.

Regulating in a sentence

• The agency is responsible for regulating the banking sector.

• The thermostat is regulating the temperature throughout the house.

Where does regulating come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word descends from the Latin regula, which literally meant a straight piece of wood, a ruler or measuring rod, and by extension a 'rule' or standard. From regula came the late Latin verb regulare, meaning 'to control by rule', and its past participle regulatus gave English the verb 'regulate' in the early 1600s. The present participle 'regulating' simply adds the familiar -ing ending to that verb. The same regula root sits behind a whole family of everyday words such as 'rule', 'regular', and 'regiment', all sharing the idea of keeping something straight and ordered. For spellers, the helpful clue is that the soft middle 'g' is followed by 'u', and the silent 'e' of 'regulate' is dropped before the -ing ending, leaving 'regulating'.

How the word is built

• regul- (from regula: rule)
• -ate (verb)
• -ing (present participle suffix)