allow
Americanverb (used with object)
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to give permission to or for; permit.
to allow a student to be absent;
No swimming allowed.
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to let have; give as one's share; grant as one's right.
to allow a person $100 for expenses.
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to permit by neglect, oversight, or the like.
to allow a door to remain open.
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to admit; acknowledge; concede.
to allow a claim.
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to take into consideration, as by adding or subtracting; set apart.
to allow an hour for changing trains.
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Older Use. to say; think.
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Archaic. to approve; sanction.
verb (used without object)
idioms
verb
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(tr) to permit (to do something); let
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(tr) to set aside
five hours were allowed to do the job
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(tr) to let enter or stay
they don't allow dogs
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(tr) to acknowledge or concede (a point, claim, etc)
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(tr) to let have; grant
he was allowed few visitors
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to take into account
allow for delays
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to permit; admit
a question that allows of only one reply
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dialect (tr; may take a clause as object) to assert; maintain
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archaic (tr) to approve; accept
Usage
What are other ways to say allow? To allow something is to give permission for it. How is allow different from permit and let? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
- preallow verb (used with object)
Etymology
Origin of allow
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English alowen, from Anglo-French al(l)o(u)er “to place, allot, allow,” Old French aloer “to place,” from Late Latin allocāre; al-, locus; the older sense “approve, sanction” and Middle English sense “praise” probably by taking the Anglo-French verb as representing Medieval Latin, Latin adlaudāre “to praise”; ad-, laud
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Putting it on hold will allow for the redirection of efforts and resources towards the construction of the base near the strategic south lunar pole, Isaacman explained, which was already a goal.
From Barron's
The Immigration and Nationality Act allows an "alien who is physically present in the United States or who arrives in the United States" to apply for asylum.
From Barron's
The AEA allows the government to detain and deport citizens of hostile foreign nations in times of war or during an "invasion or predatory incursion."
From Barron's
Gilead has its sights on gamgertamig, a so-called immune reset therapeutic that depletes the body of dysfunctional cells and allows it to rebuild its immune system.
From Barron's
The competition to lend all that money led funds to lower their interest rates or to allow interest payments-in-kind.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
