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federal

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adjective American English pronunciation: federal /ˈfed(ə)rəl/
  1. a federal country or system is one in which individual states make their own laws, but a national government is responsible for areas such as defense and foreign policy

    The U.S. Constitution created the country’s federal system.

    the German Federal Republic

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  federalThesaurus entry for this meaning of federal
    1. a.
      connected with the national government of a country rather than with the government of one of its member states

      The cost will be split between state and federal governments.

      the federal appeals court

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  federalThesaurus entry for this meaning of federal

derived word

federally

adverb

This is the American English definition of federal. View British English definition of federal.

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