dispensation

[ dis-puhn-sey-shuhn, -pen- ]
See synonyms for dispensation on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. an act or instance of dispensing; distribution.

  2. something that is distributed or given out.

  1. a certain order, system, or arrangement; administration or management.

  2. Theology.

    • the divine ordering of the affairs of the world.

    • an appointment, arrangement, or favor, as by God.

    • a divinely appointed order or age: the old Mosaic, or Jewish, dispensation; the new gospel, or Christian, dispensation.

  3. a dispensing with, doing away with, or doing without something.

  4. Roman Catholic Church.

    • a relaxation of law in a particular case granted by a competent superior or the superior's delegate in laws that the superior has the power to make and enforce: a dispensation regarding the Lenten fast.

    • an official document authorizing such a relaxation of law.

Origin of dispensation

1
1325–75; Middle English dispensacioun<Medieval Latin dispēnsātiōn- (stem of dispēnsātiō) a pardon, relaxation, Late Latin: order, system, divine grace, Latin: distribution, equivalent to dispēnsāt(us) (past participle of dispēnsāre to dispense; see -ate1) + -iōn--ion

Other words for dispensation

Other words from dispensation

  • dis·pen·sa·tion·al, adjective
  • dis·pen·sa·to·ri·ly [dih-spen-suh-tawr-uh-lee, -tohr-], /dɪˈspɛn səˌtɔr ə li, -ˌtoʊr-/, adverb
  • non·dis·pen·sa·tion, noun
  • non·dis·pen·sa·tion·al, adjective

Words Nearby dispensation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use dispensation in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dispensation

dispensation

/ (ˌdɪspɛnˈseɪʃən) /


noun
  1. the act of distributing or dispensing

  2. something distributed or dispensed

  1. a system or plan of administering or dispensing

  2. mainly RC Church

    • permission to dispense with an obligation of church law

    • the document authorizing such permission

  3. any exemption from a rule or obligation

  4. Christianity

    • the ordering of life and events by God

    • a divine decree affecting an individual or group

    • a religious system or code of prescriptions for life and conduct regarded as of divine origin

Derived forms of dispensation

  • dispensational, adjective

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