allow
to give permission to or for; permit: to allow a student to be absent;No swimming allowed.
to let have; give as one's share; grant as one's right: to allow a person $100 for expenses.
to permit by neglect, oversight, or the like: to allow a door to remain open.
to admit; acknowledge; concede: to allow a claim.
to take into consideration, as by adding or subtracting; set apart: to allow an hour for changing trains.
Older Use. to say; think.
Archaic. to approve; sanction.
to permit something to happen or to exist; admit (often followed by of): to spend more than one's budget allows;a premise that allows of only one conclusion.
Idioms about allow
allow for, to make concession or provision for: to allow for breakage.
Origin of allow
1Opposites for allow
Other words from allow
- pre·al·low, verb (used with object)
Words Nearby allow
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use allow in a sentence
At the beginning of the pandemic, the FDA took the unprecedented step of allowing companies like Legere’s to distribute antibody tests that were not authorized by the agency.
The COVID-19 Charmer: How a Self-Described Felon Convinced Elected Officials to Try to Help Him Profit From the Pandemic | by Vianna Davila, Jeremy Schwartz and Lexi Churchill | September 25, 2020 | ProPublicaThe environmental group has also called on the administration to tighten the 2019 regulations on surface expressions, which explicitly allowed steam fracking.
Gov. Gavin Newsom Says California Is Cracking Down on Oil Spills. But Our Reporting Shows Many Are Still Flowing. | by Janet Wilson, The Desert Sun | September 24, 2020 | ProPublicaMemphis Rox also offers a pay-what-you-can cost structure that allows participants to offset normal gym fees with volunteer hours at the gym or a local charity.
How Outdoor Companies Can Back Up Their DEI Pledges | Kai Lightner | September 23, 2020 | Outside OnlineFor the more ambitious, backpacking in the dunes and nearby mountains is also allowed—but by permit only.
I Tried to Climb the Largest Sand Dune in North America | Emily Pennington | September 22, 2020 | Outside OnlineAs one former employee put it, “they were HUGE cash cows” that allowed the network to lower costs paid to outside companies.
He Wanted to Fix Rural America’s Broken Nursing Homes. Now, Taxpayers May Be on the Hook for $76 Million. | by Max Blau for Georgia Health News | September 22, 2020 | ProPublica
This week, Florida became the 36th state to allow same-sex marriage.
First, they allow Paul to siphon off attention from whichever potential candidate is making news.
By contrast, a gun will allow a pilot to attack hostile forces that are less than 300 feet from friendly ground forces.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019 | Dave Majumdar | December 31, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTCover with plastic wrap and allow the dates to soften, about 15 minutes.
Make ‘The Chew’s’ Carla Hall’s Sticky Toffee Pudding | Carla Hall | December 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTallow beans to cool completely then remove to a paper towel-lined plate to dry.
Make Carla Hall’s Crispy Shallot Green Bean Casserole | Carla Hall | December 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThis treacherous sort of calm, we thought, might forbode a storm, and we did not allow it to lull us into security.
I cannot believe that a good God would create or tolerate a Devil, nor that he would allow the Devil to tempt man.
God and my Neighbour | Robert BlatchfordI allow we shan't never set eyes on ter her, Jos. I've got jest thet feelin' abaout it.
Ramona | Helen Hunt JacksonIt would not do to allow his son to do anything that would upset his dignity, though he loved him very much indeed.
Our Little Korean Cousin | H. Lee M. PikeI never see sech hosses; 'n' they're jest like kittens; they've ben drefful pets, I allow.
Ramona | Helen Hunt Jackson
British Dictionary definitions for allow
/ (əˈlaʊ) /
(tr) to permit (to do something); let
(tr) to set aside: five hours were allowed to do the job
(tr) to let enter or stay: they don't allow dogs
(tr) to acknowledge or concede (a point, claim, etc)
(tr) to let have; grant: he was allowed few visitors
(intr foll by for) to take into account: allow for delays
(intr often foll by of) to permit; admit: a question that allows of only one reply
(tr; may take a clause as object) US dialect to assert; maintain
(tr) archaic to approve; accept
Origin of allow
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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