the.com/executive order

means A directive issued by a president or similar chief executive that instructs how existing laws and agencies should be run, carrying legal force without a vote in the legislature.

from The phrase comes from straightforward English rather than any exotic root: 'executive,' meaning the branch of government that carries out and enforces laws, traces back to Latin 'exsequi' — 'to follow out, accomplish.' Paired with 'order,' a command, the term simply names an order issued by the executive. It's been part of American governance since the country's early presidents, though it only became a formally numbered, tracked category of document later, as the practice grew more common and more scrutinized.