Search Result for "sumptuary laws":

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Sumptuary \Sump"tu*a*ry\, a. [L. sumptuarius, fr. sumptus expense, cost, fr. sumere, sumptum, to take, use, spend; sub under + emere to take, buy: cf. F. somptuaire. See Redeem.] Relating to expense; regulating expense or expenditure. --Bacon. [1913 Webster] Sumptuary laws or Sumptuary regulations, laws intended to restrain or limit the expenditure of citizens in apparel, food, furniture, etc.; laws which regulate the prices of commodities and the wages of labor; laws which forbid or restrict the use of certain articles, as of luxurious apparel. [1913 Webster]
Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

SUMPTUARY LAWS. Those relating to expenses, and made to restrain excess in apparel. 2. In the United States the expenses of every man are left to his own good judgment, and not regulated by Arbitrary laws.