federal 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of federalnext
as in national
of or relating to a federation or to its central government A federal system of government distributes power between a country's central and regional governments. The President, Congress, and the Supreme Court are all part of the federal government of the United States.

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Federal

2 of 2

noun

1
as in fed

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2
as in Confederate

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of federal
Adjective
Addis Ababa has accused Egypt, Eritrea, and Sudan of supporting armed ‌opposition groups that have fought Ethiopia’s federal troops in the northern Tigray region since last week. — Paige Bruton, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026 Families with household income up to 400% of the federal poverty level qualify, meaning a family of four earning up to $132,000 a year could apply for the 2026–27 school year. — Fernanda Tronco, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2026 Oxford Police Department A father and son who worked at a Mississippi smoke shop were charged by federal prosecutors in connection with one of the two Ole Miss student deaths that took place last week. — ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026 The Digest Nine museums in Switzerland are teaming up, with federal funding, to research the provenance of over 6,300 objects from Cameroon in their collections. — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for federal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for federal
  1. national
  2. G-man
  3. GI
  4. governmental
  5. narc
  6. tracer
  7. plainclothesman
  8. tail
Adjective
  • Most of the effort to increase that and boost housing construction and supply comes from the state and local level, rather than something Congress can do at the national level.
    — Zach Halaschak, The Washington Examiner, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Mazda Motor’s flag and Japanese national flag are hoisted at the company headquarters in Fuchu-cho, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan July 15, 2025.
    — Anniek Bao,Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of national
Noun
  • Reach uses a crab trap to disarm a G-man brandishing an On the Waterfront–style hook.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Michael Biehn also plays a G-man who keeps tabs on Kammler’s work.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of G-man
Noun
  • Watermelon has a high glycemic index (GI) but a low glycemic load (GL), while papaya has a medium GI and a low GL, making both suitable for people monitoring blood sugar.
    — Heather Jones, Verywell Health, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Boston Children's was also top-ranked in the area of neonatology, pediatric gastroenterology & GI Surgery, pediatric nephrology, pediatric neurology & neurosurgery, pediatric pulmonology & lung surgery and pediatric urology.
    — Neal Riley, CBS News, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of GI
Adjective
  • Exhibitors include first responder agencies and non-governmental organizations that showcase new technologies, offer recruitment opportunities, and demonstrate local preparedness and disaster response capabilities.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • His case was also shared with the local district attorney, who has the authority to prosecute misuse of confidential governmental data, but the district attorney declined to pursue criminal charges, the audit said.
    — Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of governmental
Noun
  • But the very act of putting on a wearable—of willingly adorning oneself with a tiny computerized narc—is an act of surrender.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The team's 33-15 loss gave it a 2-11 record, which is the worst nark in the NFC.
    — Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Dec. 2025
Definition of narc
Noun
  • This imaging test uses a tracer that attaches to PSMA proteins, allowing doctors to identify where prostate cancer cells may be located throughout the body.
    — Lauryn Higgins, Flow Space, 15 June 2026
  • Many health care workers served longer, harder deployments than mine — Sierra Leonean nurses, Guinean contact tracers, Liberian community health workers — and carried equal or greater burdens, yet Americans rarely heard their stories.
    — Krutika Kuppalli, STAT, 20 May 2026
Definition of tracer
Noun
  • Less than a month later, plainclothesmen arrested Nassar at a local tire store, and Munford took him into custody.
    — Jason Schmidt, Glamour, 30 Oct. 2018
  • Hustling bucks and ducking the Third Division boys, those earnest young plainclothesmen assigned to the vice squad who work out of the 17th Precinct on the East Side.
    — Gail Sheehy, Daily Intelligencer, 9 Sep. 2017
Definition of plainclothesman
Noun
  • In the most extreme, low-probability scenarios, at the very tip of the long tail, the calculated death toll was huge, in the tens of millions.
    — Kevin Roose, Vanity Fair, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Working hard to be horrible and beautiful at once, Vahl’s debut is a stark, memorable vision of right-wing terror ultimately eating its own tail.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of tail

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Cite this Entry

“Federal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/federal. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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