rule the day

present singular third person rules the day · participle present ruling the day · participle past ruled the day · past ruled the day

1. idiomaticTo set the standard which guides behavior; to control a situation, group, strategy, etc.

   She was a woman of caprices, and her caprices always ruled the day.

   1877, Frances Hodgson Burnett, chapter 5, in Theo

   4 more examples

   The world was then so light, I scarcely felt the weight; Joy ruled the day, and Love the night.

   1700, John Dryden, The Secular Masque

   [C]ommon sense rules the day. . . . Everything can look suspicious, but only the umpires can tell if the ball's condition has been altered.

   1995 December 18, Derek Pringle, “Cricket: Matthews fingered over his thumbs”, in Independent, UK, retrieved 01 Sep 2017

   A book about former Treasury chief O'Neill paints a presidency in which ideology and politics rule the day.

   2004 January 19, John F. Dickerson, “Confessions Of A White House Insider”, in Time, retrieved 01 Sep 2017

   “Vintage watch collecting is growing in scale and value in a way we have never seen before. Condition and rarity are ruling the day in driving prices to new levels.”

   2016 January 19, Jane A. Peterson, “At Watch Auctions, Vintage and Prime to Be Most Prized Qualities”, in New York Times, retrieved 01 Sep 2017