noun, verb, -dat⋅ed, -dat⋅ing.| 1. | a command or authorization to act in a particular way on a public issue given by the electorate to its representative: The president had a clear mandate to end the war. |
| 2. | a command from a superior court or official to a lower one. |
| 3. | an authoritative order or command: a royal mandate. |
| 4. | (in the League of Nations) a commission given to a nation to administer the government and affairs of a former Turkish territory or German colony. |
| 5. | a mandated territory or colony. |
| 6. | Roman Catholic Church. an order issued by the pope, esp. one commanding the preferment of a certain person to a benefice. |
| 7. | Roman and Civil Law. a contract by which one engages gratuitously to perform services for another. |
| 8. | (in modern civil law) any contract by which a person undertakes to perform services for another. |
| 9. | Roman Law. an order or decree by the emperor, esp. to governors of provinces. |
| 10. | to authorize or decree (a particular action), as by the enactment of law. |
| 11. | to order or require; make mandatory: to mandate sweeping changes in the election process. |
| 12. | to consign (a territory, colony, etc.) to the charge of a particular nation under a mandate. |
A command or an expression of a desire, especially by a group of voters for a political program. Politicians elected in landslide victories often claim that their policies have received a mandate from the voters.