sanction

American  

[sangk-shuhn] / ˈsæŋk ʃən /

noun

• sanctions
  plural

1. authoritative permission or approval, as for an action.

   Synonyms:

   authorization

   Antonyms:

   prohibition, interdiction

2. something that serves to support an action, condition, etc.

3. something that gives binding force, as to an oath, rule of conduct, etc.

4. Law.

   1. a provision of a law enacting a penalty for disobedience or a reward for obedience.

   2. the penalty or reward.

5. International Law. action by one or more states toward another state calculated to force it to comply with legal obligations.

---

verb (used with object)

• sanctions,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sanctioned,
  past participle,  past
• sanctioning
  present participle

1. to authorize, approve, or allow.

   an expression now sanctioned by educated usage.

   Synonyms:

   permit

   Antonyms:

   deny

2. to ratify or confirm.

   to sanction a law.

3. to impose a sanction on; penalize, especially by way of discipline.

sanction British  

/ ˈsæŋkʃən /

noun

1. final permission; authorization

2. aid or encouragement

3. something, such as an ethical principle, that imparts binding force to a rule, oath, etc

4. the penalty laid down in a law for contravention of its provisions

5. (often plural) a coercive measure, esp one taken by one or more states against another guilty of violating international law

---

verb

1. to give authority to; permit

2. to make authorized; confirm

Usage

What does sanction mean? Sanction has two main senses that are almost opposites: it can refer to authorizing or approving something, or to penalizing or disciplining someone or something. Sanction can be used as a verb (meaning to authorize or to penalize) or a noun (meaning approval or penalty). It is most commonly used in official contexts. As a noun referring to a penalty, it is especially applied to situations in which one country’s government imposes economic sanctions on another to try to force it to comply with laws or certain expectations. Example: Economic sanctions are intended to force regimes to play by the rules, but they often end up hurting the average citizen.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonsanction
  noun
• sanctioner
  noun
• resanction
  verb (used with object)
• supersanction
  verb (used with object)
• sanctionable
  adjective
• sanctionative
  adjective
• sanctionless
  adjective
• unsanctionable
  adjective
• unsanctioning
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sanctions
  plural

Participles

• sanctioning
  present
• sanctioned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sanction
  simple
• sanctions
  simple
• have sanctioned
  perfect
• has sanctioned
  perfect
• am sanctioning
  progressive
• are sanctioning
  progressive
• is sanctioning
  progressive
• have been sanctioning
  perfect progressive
• has been sanctioning
  perfect progressive

Past

• sanctioned
  simple
• had sanctioned
  perfect
• was sanctioning
  progressive
• were sanctioning
  progressive
• had been sanctioning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sanction
  simple
• will have sanctioned
  perfect
• will be sanctioning
  progressive
• will have been sanctioning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of sanction

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin sānctiōn- (stem of sānctiō ), equivalent to sānct(us) (past participle of sancīre “to prescribe by law”) + -iōn- noun suffix; see -ion

Explanation

Sanction has two nearly opposite meanings: to sanction can be to approve of something, but it can also mean to punish, or speak harshly to. Likewise, a sanction can be a punishment or approval. Very confusing — the person who invented this word should be publicly sanctioned! See if you can guess the meaning of sanction in the following contexts. Before invading Iraq, the U.S. and its allies first imposed sanctions on the country, refusing to supply the country with much-needed trade items. Did you guess that sanction = "punishment"? You were right! But by trading with China at the same time, the U.S. quietly sanctioned that nation's known instances of human rights abuses. Did you guess that sanction = "approval"? You're right again!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sanction sanctions sanctioned sanctioning

The sanction was later transferred from the lawyer to the U.S. attorney’s office, though Nunley warned that he would issue more if he didn’t see proof immigrants had been set free as ordered.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

As a club, Hearts have every right to remain livid at the crass goading of their players during the invasion that greeted Celtic's title win - and the tokenistic sanction that followed it.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

You cannot decapitate a movement with no head, and you cannot sanction an organization that does not exist.

From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026

Google filed a new challenge arguing before the bloc's top court, the European Court of Justice, that the case was unfounded and that the sanction penalised innovation.

From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026

This order is subject to all judicial enforcement and sanction.

From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry

Tuesday's complaint, filed by HRW, American Friends Service Committee, Center for Constitutional Rights and Open Society Institute, says the sanctions have caused "profound and irreparable harm."

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

For the Kremlin, Wildberries was meant to be a symbol of Russian ingenuity and resilience despite Western sanctions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

"But also one that works for us and doesn't lead us to have to sell players we don't want to sell and lead to Uefa sanctions."

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

He declined to say what sanctions the officers faced.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

He opened the meeting with a controversial speech in which he called for our sanctions policy to be reevaluated.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

You might very well pay more than your married neighbor — a penalty sanctioned by the state and judiciary.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

Athena told us that children with special educational needs are "not routinely sanctioned for behaviours associated with their needs".

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026

As I approached the site on my tour bus—the only sanctioned way to visit—hundreds of locked red doors protecting the grottoes came into view, speckled across a sun-bleached cliff face more than a mile long.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

Robinson’s courage—along with his hitting, fielding and baserunning—helped set the stage for the end of legally sanctioned segregation in American society and the beginning of integration.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

What an embarrassment in her own backyard, as if she, Dede, had sanctioned all this.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez

Elsewhere, former cruiserweight rival Murat Gassiev - beaten by Usyk in their undisputed clash in 2018 - holds the WBA 'regular' title and also sits high in the sanctioning queue.

From BBC ● May 24, 2026

But he added that "there are still significant loopholes and areas that have been unaddressed by sanctioning countries", allowing volumes to remain high.

From Barron's ● Feb. 24, 2026

The law said the president in response to a national emergency may deal with an “unusual and extraordinary threat” by freezing assets or sanctioning a foreign country or otherwise regulating trade.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026

It said it will be sanctioning multiple entities, individuals and vessels to “stem the flow of revenue that the regime in Tehran uses to support terrorism abroad and repress its citizens.”

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 6, 2026

In 1645 he returned to Scotland, and is said to have drawn the act of assembly sanctioning the directory of public worship.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1 "Gichtel, Johann" to "Glory" by Various

Related Words

• accredit
• allow
• approve
• certify
• empower
• endorse
• permit
• ratify
• warrant