rule

Definitions

• A regulation, law, guideline.
• A ruler; device for measuring, a straightedge, a measure.
• A straight line continuous mark, as made by a pen or the like, especially one lying across a paper as a guide for writing.
• A regulating principle.
• The act of ruling; administration of law; government; empire; authority; control.
• A normal condition or state of affairs.
• (obsolete) Conduct; behaviour.
• (legal) An order regulating the practice of the courts, or an order made between parties to an action or a suit.
• (math) A determinate method prescribed for performing any operation and producing a certain result.
• (printing) A thin plate of brass or other metal, of the same height as the type, and used for printing lines, as between columns on the same page, or in tabular work.