Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to deregulate

to deregulate

25 5.8
To remove rules that the government makes for an industry or market
  • verb
  • /ˌdiːˈrɛɡjʊˌleɪt/
translation icon : desregular
  • After the review, the committee decided to deregulate the airline industry to lower ticket prices.
  • deregulated markets
  • deregulated electricity
  • deregulate the industry

I think he did great things in deregulating the transport sector.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • All this is happening without government action, except initial decisions to deregulate internal markets.

    Academic text (1995)

  • The legislator will reintroduce a bill to deregulate electric power in the next congressional session.

    Academic text (1997)

  • When you deregulate the banking industry.

    Capitalism: A Love Story (2009)

  • I also found interesting he signed executive orders to deregulate the oil industry and get rid of all offshore wind energy production.

  • Cut taxes and deregulate wherever you can to make this the greatest place to live and invest, which it is.

  • So the first job I had was in the Education department and I wanted to deregulate childcare to make it cheaper.

  • During the next decade, most states in the USA will deregulate electricity generation.

    Academic text (2000)

  • He thinks he can force Congress to deregulate it.

    Xchange (2001)

  • At the same time, many developing countries that failed to deregulate had stagnating economies.

    Academic text (1998)

  • In the 1990s, private international capital markets were deregulated and flush with funds.

    Academic text (1999)

Synonyms

to loosen
vsto deregulate
83 3.3

Make rules or limits less strict

involves full removal of regulations rather than partial easing or softening
to liberalize
vsto deregulate
12 6.3

To make laws or rules less strict to allow more freedom

focuses more on removing restrictions through official policy rather than promoting openness
to decontrol
vsto deregulate
  • Formal
7.6

To remove official rules or limits set by a government

is specifically about removing regulations by government action rather than vague easing
to derestrict
vsto deregulate
8.6

To remove limits from something so people can use it freely

is about government removal of rules rather than a general lifting of limits

Antonyms

to restrict
361 3.1

Limit how much people can use or access something

to regulate
258 3.4

To control something using rules or laws

How Regulated

to regulate
258 3.4
to loosen
83 3.3
to deregulate
25 5.8
to abolish
112 4.1

Surface Forms

deregulate infinitive
deregulated past
deregulated past participle
deregulating present participle
deregulates third person singular

Morphology

deregulate = regulate (transparent) = de + regulate

The prefix 'de-' clearly contributes the meaning of removing or reversing regulation from the base verb 'regulate'.

Etymology

Deregulate breaks into de- meaning 'remove' and regulate meaning 'to control', like in regular. So to deregulate is to 'take away rules' or controls from an industry or activity.