consent

[kuh n-sent]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR consent ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to permit, approve, or agree; comply or yield (often followed by to or an infinitive): He consented to the proposal. We asked her permission, and she consented.

Archaic. to agree in sentiment, opinion, etc.; be in harmony.

noun

permission, approval, or agreement; compliance; acquiescence: He gave his consent to the marriage.

agreement in sentiment, opinion, a course of action, etc.: By common consent he was appointed official delegate.

Archaic. accord; concord; harmony.

Origin of consent

1175–1225; (v.) Middle English consenten < Anglo-French, Old French consentir < Latin consentīre (see consensus); (noun) Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French, noun derivative of the v.

Related formscon·sent·er, nouncon·sent·ing·ly, adverbnon·con·sent, nounnon·con·sent·ing, adjective, nounpre·con·sent, noun, verb (used without object)re·con·sent, verb (used without object)un·con·sent·ing, adjective

Can be confusedascent assent consent

Synonym study

1. See agree.

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

Related Words for consenting

subscribe, comply, acquiesce, accede, okay, permit, assent, accept, bless, fold, concede, let, yield, allow, sanction, concur, yes, approve

Examples from the Web for consenting

Contemporary Examples of consenting

What happens during that time is between two consenting adults.
Sex, Power, and Desire: The Life of America’s Next Top Escort
Scott Bixby
March 19, 2014
This, his lawyers argued, was a “loving relationship between two consenting adults.”
Men Who Hate Women
Barbie Latza Nadeau
February 17, 2013
If two consenting adults want to experiment with coprophilia for example?
Newsweek Live Chat: What the Internet Can Teach Us About Sex
The Daily Beast
April 25, 2011
We are consenting adults in an active collaboration for the pleasure and well-being of everyone involved.
The Ethical Slut Returns
Marty Beckerman
April 23, 2009

Historical Examples of consenting

She paused, with a look of expectation, as if she waited for my consenting answer.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
I dare say his modesty would prevent his consenting to the plan.
Homeward Bound
James Fenimore Cooper
He therefore ended by consenting to act as guide to the two comrades.
The Downfall
Emile Zola
"I told her of your consenting to help Mr. Taylor in his dilemma," said Mother.
The Rise of Roscoe Paine
Joseph C. Lincoln
And no sooner had Balbi written, consenting, than Casanova explained what was to do.
The Historical Nights' Entertainment
Rafael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for consenting

consent

verb

to give assent or permission (to do something); agree; accede

(intr) obsolete to be in accord; agree in opinion, feelings, etc

noun

acquiescence to or acceptance of something done or planned by another; permission

accordance or harmony in opinion; agreement (esp in the phrase with one consent)

age of consent the lowest age at which the law recognizes the right of a person to consent to sexual intercourse

Derived Formsconsenter, nounconsenting, adjective

Word Origin for consent

C13: from Old French consentir, from Latin consentīre to feel together, agree, from sentīre to feel

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

Word Origin and History for consenting

consent

early 13c., from Old French consentir (12c.) "agree, comply," from Latin consentire "feel together," from com- "with" (see com-) + sentire "to feel" (see sense (n.)). "Feeling together," hence, "agreeing, giving permission," apparently a sense evolution that took place in French before the word reached English. Related: Consented; consenting.

consent

c.1300, "approval," also "agreement in sentiment, harmony," from Old French consente, from consentir (see consent (v.)). Age of consent is attested from 1809.