instrumentality
1
8.9
- noun
- /ˌɪnstrəˈmɛntəlɪti/
- Formal
:
organismo
- The school is potentially the state's most influential and effective instrumentality of molding social attitudes and behavior.
- state instrumentality
- federal instrumentalities
- agencies and instrumentalities
Examples
-
First, a police department and its officers undisputedly qualify as "public entities" because they are a "department... or other instrumentality of a State... or local government." There is no statutory exception to this definition, and even the Fifth Circuit has conceded that police are public entities.
Academic text (2017) -
Emphasis is placed upon student achievement of the objectives of the school district, and teachers are considered instrumentalities for attaining those objectives.
Academic text (1991) -
Over the next several decades, the Supreme Court considered whether the states could tax various income and instrumentalities of the Federal Government.
Academic text (2017) -
The Court is ordering an instrumentality of the State to support religious evangelism with direct funding.
Academic text (1996) -
Courts in a number of jurisdictions have further refined the traditional test for determining joint employer liability to the "instrumentality" test.
Academic text (2016) -
Accordingly, entities need not be state-owned to qualify as an "instrumentality"; serving a governmental function is sufficient.
Academic text (2018) -
The transportation authority is an important instrumentality that facilitates public transit in the city.
-
As an instrumentality of state government, the finance agency regulates funding for community projects.
-
The housing authority operates as an instrumentality created to assist low-income families in finding affordable housing.
Synonyms
∞
3.0
A business or organization that provides services for other people
87
3.1
An official part of the government that provides a public service
42
5.5
A part of an organization, often a government, that has a particular job
How Powerful
889
3.1
- UK
147
3.7
∞
3.0
- Formal
1
8.9
∞
1.8
∞
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
instrumentality = instrumental (semi-transparent) = instrument + al + ity
Although built from 'instrument' via 'instrumental' + '-ity', the specialized institutional sense ('a governmental agency') is a metaphorical extension and may not be directly inferable by learners.
Etymology
Instrumentality comes from the word instrument, meaning 'tool', which helps explain the other use: a government instrumentality is an organization used as a 'tool' to carry out a particular job.