| 释义 |
federal, a. and n.|ˈfɛdərəl|
Also 7–8 fœderal.
[a. F. fédéral, f. L. type *fœderāl-is, f. fœder-, fœdus covenant (:—pre-Lat. *bhoidhes-) cognate with fidēs faith.]
A. adj.
1.
†a. gen. Of or pertaining to a covenant, compact, or treaty. Obs.
1660Stillingfl. Iren. i. iv. (1662) 91 The sprinkling of the blood which was the main thing intended here as a fœderal rite. 1701Grew Cosm. Sacra iii. iv. 113 The Romans compell'd them..contrary to all Fœderal Right and Justice..to part with Sardinia. 1789G. White Selborne (1853) 336 Not so the sage: inspired with pious awe He hails the federal arch. 1825T. Jefferson Autobiog. Wks. 1859 I. 15 Our connection had been federal only, and was now dissolved by the commencement of hostilities.
b. spec. (Theol.) Pertaining to or based upon the Covenant of Works, or Covenant of Grace. Also, Constituting or expressing a covenant entered into by an individual with God. See covenant n. 8.
federal theology: the system based on the doctrine of covenants made by God with Adam as representing mankind, and with Christ as representing the Church. federal head: = covenant-head (covenant n. 10 b), applied to Adam and Christ.
1645Ussher Body Div. (1647) 418 There is a fœderall sanctity, or externall and visible holinesse at least in children of believing parents. 1649Jer. Taylor Gt. Exemp. ii. viii. 71 Our restitution and accesse to the first fœderall condition. 1673True Worsh. God 30 The Sacrament of Christs Body and Blood..being a Fæderal Banquet. 1737Waterland Eucharist 424 The Service of the Holy Communion carries in it something of a federal Nature, is a kind of covenanting or stipulating Act. a1800Cowper On Milton's P.L. Wks. 1837 XV. 339 Christ becomes the fœderal head of his church. 1878Encycl. Brit. (ed. 9) VI. 91 As one of the leading exponents of ‘federal’ theology, he [Cocceius] spiritualized the Hebrew Scriptures to such an extent that [etc.].
2. a. Of or pertaining to, or of the nature of, that form of government in which two or more states constitute a political unity while remaining more or less independent with regard to their internal affairs.
This sense arises from the contextual meaning of phrases like federal union, in which the adj. was originally used in sense 1 a.
[1707Seton Sp. in Sc. Parlt. in Parl. Hist. VI. App. 142 Sweden and Denmark were united by a fœderal compact under one monarch.] 1777Robertson Hist. Amer. (1783) II. 197 The celebrated league, that united the Five Nations in Canada into a federal republic. 1787J. Barlow Oration 4 July 8 The establishment of a permanent fœderal system. 1832Lewis Use & Ab. Pol. Terms x. 88 A federal government is when an union is formed between several States. 1837J. C. Calhoun Wks. III. 166 The party who believed that this was a Federal Republic. 1851H. Martineau Hist. Peace (1877) III. v. xii. 449 The scheme of constituting a federal union of the British North American provinces. 1874Stubbs Const. Hist. (1875) I. ii. 26 There was not..any federal bond among the several tribes.
b. Of or pertaining to the political unity so constituted, as distinguished from the separate states composing it.
1789T. Jefferson Writ. (1859) II. 576 They have passed a bill rendering every person holding any federal office incapable of holding at the same time any State office. 1796Washington Let. Writings 1892 XIII. 342 One or other of the proprietors in the Federal City. 1844Thirlwall Greece VIII. lxi. 83 The federal sovereignty resided in the general assembly. 1876Mathews Coinage xxi. 198 It was not until several years after the declaration of Independence (1776) that a Federal coinage was issued. 1891Speaker 11 July 36/1 Into both federal and cantonal legislation the Referendum has been introduced.
3. U.S. Hist.
a. Favouring the establishment of a strong federal, i.e. central government.
1788Lond. Mag. 21 [The people of Massachusetts] forward in promoting the fœderal interest. 1789T. Jefferson Writ. (1859) II. 576 Everywhere the elections are federal. 1796Morse Amer. Geog. I. 587 Marylanders..are in general very federal. 1839J. C. Calhoun Wks. III. 391 He [Hamilton] is the..impersonation of the national or Federal School..as Jefferson is of the State Rights Republican School. 1888Bryce Amer. Commw. II. iii. liii. 332 The disappearance of the Federal party between 1815 and 1820 left the Republicans masters of the field.
b. In the American Civil War of 1861–65: Of or pertaining to the Northern or Union party, or its supporters, troops, etc.
1861O. W. Holmes Pages fr. Old Vol. Life (1891) 2 A sad disaster to the Federal army. 1863Dicey Federal St. II. 241 The stories of the barbarities and cruelties inflicted by the Confederates on Federal prisoners. 1878N. Amer. Rev. CXXVI. 258 A loud Federal cheer was heard, proving Jackson to be hard pressed.
4. a. United in a league, allied, confederated. rare.
1867J. B. Rose tr. Virgil's æneid 105 No fleet of mine was federal 'gainst Troy.
b. Applied to a non-political association of quasi-autonomous units.
1911Encycl. Brit. XXII. 293/2 A loose union, called the ‘Federal Council of the Reformed Churches in America’, was formed in 1894. 1954Times Lit. Suppl. 5 Feb. 93/1 The geography and diverse character of Wales made a federal university of scattered colleges a necessity.
B. n. Chiefly pl. One on the side of the Union in the American Civil War of 1861–65; esp. a soldier in the Northern army.
1861Daily Dispatch (Richmond, Va.) 24 July 3/5 The federals advanced gradually among the masked batteries. 1870A. H. Stephens Hist. War betw. States II. xxiii. 582 Two grand campaigns were now again clearly developed by the Federals. 1871Sir S. Northcote Life, Lett. & Diaries (1890) II. 38 Timidly putting in a plea for a few flowers to two or three graves of Federals also.
Add:[A.] [2.] c. Federal Reserve, the reserve money available to U.S. banks under the Federal Reserve Act 1913 to manage the country's money supply, or the system of banks which controls this reserve. Chiefly attrib. and Comb., esp. as Federal Reserve note, Federal Reserve system; Federal Reserve bank, each of the twelve regional banks which regulate and serve the member banks of the Federal Reserve system; Federal Reserve Board, the board regulating the Federal Reserve system and consisting of governors appointed by the U.S. President with Senate approval. U.S.
1913Q. Jrnl. Econ. Aug. 743 Its administration was placed under the control and direction of the Federal Reserve Board. 1914Ibid. Feb. 213 Banks of a new class, to be known as Federal Reserve Banks, are to be established, and upon these banks is to rest the heavy responsibility of supporting the structure of credit in periods of financial stress. Ibid. 237 (heading) Federal Reserve notes and National Bank notes. 1915H. P. Willis (title) The Federal Reserve: a study of the banking system of the United States. Ibid. vi. 124 The Federal reserve ‘system’ is..a plan for the creation of a number of reserve institutions. 1920New Internat. Year Bk. 1919 84 The great strength and value of the Federal Reserve System, only five years old on Nov. 16, 1919, were more apparent than ever before. 1931Star 8 May 27/4 A desire of the Federal Reserve authorities to discourage further gold imports. 1943J. D. Hicks Short Hist. Amer. Democracy 664 The law also provided for a new type of currency, Federal Reserve notes, which would vary in quantity according to the needs of business. 1952Manch. Guardian Weekly 15 May 3/1 The Federal Reserve Board was a little tight-lipped in explaining its move..to suspend controls on hire purchase. 1982S. B. Flexner Listening to Amer. 187 Today, about 90 percent of our paper money is in Federal Reserve Notes issued through the twelve Federal Reserve Banks. 1986Times 12 May 17/1 The Federal Reserve is..in a state of confusion. |