Word of the Day Archive
Wednesday December 11, 2002
ukase \yoo-KAYS; -KAYZ; YOO-kays; -kayz\ , noun:
1. In imperial Russia, a published proclamation or order having the force of law.
2. Any order or decree issued by an authority; an edict.
I took a playwriting course from the noted Prof. A. M. Drummond, a huge man on crutches who right off the bat delivered a ukase never to begin a play with the telephone ringing.
-- Arthur Laurents, Original Story By
This new ukase, however, ignited bureaucratic warfare and spawned rival and conflicting rules and concepts, frittering away time and effort.
-- Richard B. Frank, Downfall: The End of the Imperial Japanese Empire
Ukase derives from Russian ukaz, "decree," from Old Church Slavonic ukazu, "a showing, proof," from u-, "at, to" + kazati, "to point out, to show."
Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation for ukase
