regulate

verb

Etymology: Borrowed from Latin regulatus, perfect passive participle of regulō (“to direct, rule, regulate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from regula (“rule”), from regō (“to keep straight, direct, govern, rule”). Compare regle, rail. Displaced native Old English metegian.

1. To dictate policy.
2. To control or direct according to rule, principle, or law.

   “the laws which regulate the succession of the seasons”

   “The herdsmen near the frontier adjudicated their own disputes, and regulated their own police.”

3. To adjust (a mechanism) for accurate and proper functioning.

   “to regulate a watch, i.e. adjust its rate of running so that it will keep approximately standard time”

   “to regulate the temperature of a room, the pressure of steam, the speed of a machine, etc.”

4. To put or maintain in order.

   “to regulate the disordered state of a nation or its finances”

   “to regulate one's eating habits”