authorization
Americannoun
-
authorizations
plural
-
the act of authorizing.
-
a legislative act authorizing money to be spent for government programs that specifies a maximum spending level without provision for actual funds.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of authorization
Explanation
Authorization is an official form of approval for something. You'll probably need to get authorization from the owner of a coffee shop before you hang your oil paintings on the walls. People in control are known as authorities, and their official okay, or authorization, gives you the ability to do something. The authorization of a loan means the bank grants the loan. Authorization can also refer to someone's power — if you are able to fire people, you have the authorization to do so. At the root of authorization is the verb authorize, which comes from the Latin auctor, "master or leader," or "one who causes to grow."
Vocabulary lists containing authorization
The Other Side
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 18–September 24, 2021
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"CLEP Financial Accounting," Vocabulary from Chapter 8
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Leaders at Anthropic, OpenAI and Google have encouraged "pacing" - or slowing down - development after models created by all three were found to have escaped their testing environments or taken actions without authorization.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
A new State Department warning Thursday said U.S. government officials now need special authorization to use the Riyadh airport.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
Fulfilling its buyback authorization will require far more free cash than Nvidia generates today.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
In a recent American Medical Association survey, 95% of physicians said they’ve seen prior authorization requirements delay necessary care.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2026
“Er, miss, we don’t have authorization for that,” the guard replied.
From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
To Sankar, that leaves room for further buyback authorizations down the line.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
Some took the announcement that work authorizations remained in place — made late Wednesday by U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
Haitian immigrants across the country received an eleventh-hour relief Friday as the government extended work authorizations for Haitians with temporary protected status.
From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026
Doctors and forensic experts in the port examined bodies under tarpaulins held up by four poles before issuing death certificates and cremation authorizations.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
In addition, there are unused tonnage authorizations for construction of naval vessels now valued at 5.4 billion dollars.
From State of the Union Address by Harry S. Truman
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
