ministerielle

Ministerielle is the feminine form of the French adjective ministériel, used to indicate that something belongs to, is issued by, or concerns a ministry or a minister. It is commonly found in administrative and legal language to qualify documents, communications, or policies associated with a government department.

The masculine counterpart is ministériel, used with masculine nouns (for example, un budget ministériel, un rapport ministériel). The feminine form appears with feminine nouns, yielding phrases such as une circulaire ministérielle, une note ministérielle, une proposition ministérielle, or une instruction ministérielle. These constructions denote official material issued by a ministry or pertaining to its functions.

Usage and context: ministerielle tends to appear in formal writings, such as government reports, legal acts, regulatory documents, and administrative correspondence in Francophone countries like France, Belgium, Switzerland, and parts of Canada. It helps distinguish materials produced by a ministry from other sources, such as parlementaire or départemental documents.

Notes on meaning: while ministerielle signals a link to a ministry, it does not specify the content or authority beyond that association. The precise legal weight of a ministerielle document depends on its type (circular, directive, note, decree) and the issuing ministry.

See also: ministère, ministériel, circulaire, arrêté.