hall pass
Americannoun
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a slip of paper or other object authorizing a student to be out of the classroom during a class period.
I hand out only four hall passes per term—two bathroom passes and two locker passes.
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permission from one’s spouse or partner to go out independently for any desired activity, sometimes even including sexual encounters with other partners.
His wife and little person were going out, so he had a hall pass to come with us for a bite to eat.
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freedom or license to do something not normally allowed.
Temperatures are starting to drop, but that doesn't mean we have a hall pass to halt our outdoor workouts.
Etymology
Origin of hall pass
First recorded in 1930–35
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.
But to everyone else, it was like an extended hall pass or a long lunch.
From Washington Post • Feb. 10, 2023
And I mentioned this in the book, and I say, if I would've known anything, I would've abused it just how I abused the hall pass.
From Salon • Feb. 5, 2023
It was kind of like they gave me like a hall pass to like be an alien.
From New York Times • Aug. 6, 2022
And during one visit to the Clinton White House, the president urged Young to stay, but Young said he would need a hall pass.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 28, 2022
“My dirty-rascal chip gets deactivated during lockdowns. ID card or hall pass, please.”
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Definitions 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.
