allowed

[ uh-loud ]

/ əˈlaʊd /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR allowed ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

Physics. involving a change in quantum numbers, permitted by the selection rules: allowed transition.

Words nearby allowed

allowable, allowable cut, allowance, allowance race, alloway, allowed, allowedly, alloxan, alloxuremia, alloxuria, alloy

Origin of allowed

allow + -ed²

OTHER WORDS FROM allowed

un·al·lowed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH allowed

allowed allude aloud elude

Definition for allowed (2 of 2)

allow

[ uh-lou ]

/ əˈlaʊ /

verb (used with object)

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.

verb (used without object)

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.

Origin of allow

1250–1300; Middle English alowen < Anglo-French al(l)o(u)er to place, allot, allow, Old French aloer to place < Late Latin allocāre; see al-, locus; the older sense “approve, sanction” and Middle English sense “praise” probably by taking the Anglo-French v. as representing Medieval Latin, Latin adlaudāre to praise; see ad-, laud

ANTONYMS FOR allow

1 forbid, prohibit.

SEE ANTONYMS FOR allow ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM allow

pre·al·low, verb (used with object)

synonym study for allow

1. Allow, let, permit imply granting or conceding the right of someone to do something. Allow and permit are often interchangeable, but permit is the more positive. Allow implies complete absence of an attempt, or even an intent, to hinder. Permit suggests formal or implied assent or authorization. Let is the familiar, conversational term for both allow and permit.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for allowed

A Wall Street person should not be allowed to help oversee the Dodd-Frank reforms.
Antonio Weiss Is Not Part of the Problem|Steve Rattner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
During an emergency that ratio could be allowed to drop to 8.5 people per orbit.
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says|Dave Majumdar|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
States were encouraged and allowed to lower standards to make it appear they were improving.
The ‘No Child’ Rewrite Threatens Your Kids’ Future|Jonah Edelman|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Users “should be allowed to use these devices and services the way they were intended,” Brookman says.
How ‘Ethical’ Hotel Chain Marriott Gouges Guests in the Name of Wi-Fi Security|Kyle Chayka|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST

His accuser was smeared and demeaned, and a star football player was allowed to keep on playing.
Jameis Winston Cleared of Rape Like Every Other College Sports Star|Robert Silverman|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Lizzie, indeed, is fond of work; she is busy all day long, and it is evident that her sewing-machine is not allowed to rust.
London's Heart|B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon
It is, if I may be allowed to say so, the sinister suggestion in your speech, inspector—superintendent I mean.
The Green Rust|Edgar Wallace
One couldn't help wondering that the Fairy Aurora allowed it to be in her room.
Roumanian Fairy Tales|Various
They were to be allowed to usher in the glorious day by the blowing of horns exactly at sunrise.
The Peterkin Papers|Lucretia P Hale
The noble Marquis consequently hoped that the Trojan horse would not be allowed to come within the walls of Parliament.
The Grand Old Man|Richard B. Cook

British Dictionary definitions for allowed

allow

/ (əˈlaʊ) /

verb

(tr) to permit (to do something); let

(tr) to set asidefive hours were allowed to do the job

(tr) to let enter or staythey don't allow dogs

(tr) to acknowledge or concede (a point, claim, etc)

(tr) to let have; granthe was allowed few visitors

(intr foll by for) to take into accountallow for delays

(intr often foll by of) to permit; admita question that allows of only one reply

(tr; may take a clause as object) US dialect to assert; maintain

(tr) archaic to approve; accept

Word Origin for allow

C14: from Old French alouer, from Late Latin allaudāre to extol, influenced by Medieval Latin allocāre to assign, allocate

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012