maen deIt
noun
1. a commission given to a country to administer territory on behalf of an international body such as, formerly, the League of Nations. Britain was given a mandate over Palestine after World War I.
2. the territory subject to such an order. Palestine was a British mandate from 1920 until 1948.
3. a directive given or implied by the vote of an electorate. The government must now act on its mandate to deal with the problem of unemployment.
4. an authoritative order or directive, as from a sovereign or from a higher court to a lower one. Many of the nobles refused to obey the king’s mandate.
transitive verb
1. to consign (territories or colonies) to the care and authority of a specified nation by mandate. The League of Nations mandated Palestine to Britain.
2. to authorize or require, as by law or popular vote. The new law mandates the recycling of glass and paper by all local businesses. The Surgeon General mandated that cigarette packaging display health warnings.