blank check

American  

noun

1. a bank check bearing a signature but no stated amount.

2. unrestricted authority; a free hand.

   He was given a blank check in the choice of personnel for the new department.

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blank check Idioms  

1. Unrestricted authority, a free hand, as in I'll support most of the chairman's agenda, but I'm not ready to give him a blank check for the company's future. Literally this term signifies a bank check that is signed by the drawer but does not indicate the amount of money, which is filled in by the person to whom it is given. [Late 1800s]

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Etymology

Origin of blank check

First recorded in 1790–95, and in 1885–90 blank check for def. 2

Example Sentences

Friday’s move represented an 18% jump from the stock’s previous closing price, after Xanadu went public through a business combination with a publicly traded blank check company.

From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026

But the latest results—and the reaction in after-hours trading Wednesday—show the blank check investors have written to the Facebook parent might have an expiration date after all.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 30, 2025

However bad you might imagine the vocal stylings of an amateur recording artist with a blank check and an inflated sense of her own talent could be, Lara is worse.

From Slate • Jan. 20, 2025

"There can’t be a blank check on this, however, because people want to make sure that as rebuilding occurs... that these sorts of things can’t happen again," he said.

From Salon • Jan. 12, 2025

"All right, all right, I'm writing a check now. I'm writing them a blank check."

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

Related Words

• free rein