Ruling

How to spell ruling

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce ruling

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does ruling mean?

1. nounAn official decision or judgement made by a judge, court, or other authority.
2. adjectiveCurrently holding power or exercising dominant control.

Ruling in a sentence

• noun

  The court issued a ruling in favour of the tenants.

• adjective

  The ruling party promised to cut taxes before the next election.

• noun

  The referee's ruling on the disputed goal angered the home crowd.

• adjective

  The ruling family had controlled the region for centuries.

Where does ruling come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Ruling is built on the verb and noun 'rule', which English took from the Old French 'reule', itself descended from the Latin 'regula', meaning a straight stick, a ruler, or a measuring rod. That 'regula' came in turn from the verb 'regere', 'to lead straight, to keep upright, to govern', and the same root sits inside familiar relatives like 'regular', 'regiment', and even 'regal'. The literal idea of a straight measuring stick stretched naturally into the figurative sense of a standard people must follow, and then into the act of governing or deciding. By the fourteenth century 'rule' carried both the sense of authority and the sense of a fixed principle, and adding the English '-ing' ending produced 'ruling' for both the act of governing and, later, the formal decision handed down by a judge. The plain spelling drops the silent 'e' of 'rule' before '-ing', which is the only small trap worth remembering.

How the word is built

• rule (from Latin regula: a straight stick, a measuring rod)
• -ing (forming a noun or adjective)