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ratify

RAT-i-fy /ˈrætɪfaɪ/

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formal

To give formal consent to a treaty, contract, or agreement, making it officially valid and legally binding.

Ratification requires an official domestic legislative or executive vote, distinct from merely signing an agreement at a summit.

The story behind the word. From Medieval Latin 'ratificare', combining 'ratus' (fixed or settled) and 'facere' (to make). When a government ratifies a treaty, it literally makes the agreement fixed and settled in municipal law.

Word relationships

sanction: Sanction can mean official authorization or punishment, whereas ratify specifically means formally validating a legal agreement.
endorse: Endorse means to express public approval, but does not legally enact a treaty into municipal law.

repudiate: Repudiate means to formally reject or refuse to acknowledge an obligation.
reject: Reject means to refuse to accept or ratify.

Commonly confused with

rectify: Rectify means to correct or put right a mistake, whereas ratify means to formally approve and validate.

Word family

ratification (noun): The official act of giving formal consent to make an agreement valid.
ratifier (noun): A person or state entity that ratifies an agreement.

Collocations

ratify a treaty
vote to ratify
fail to ratify
ratify an amendment

Idioms & expressions

awaiting ratification

Example sentences

"For the Paris Agreement to enter into force, at least 55 countries representing 55 percent of global emissions needed to ratify it." Global policy report
"Parliament met in a special session to ratify the regional environmental treaty." Parliamentary debate

Memory hook

RAtify = make it VALID and SETTLED in law. Make it fixed and legally binding.

When not to use

Do not use for informal approvals, such as a manager approving a vacation request.

Fun facts

The US Constitution took over a year to be ratified by the required nine states, sparking the famous Federalist Papers debates.