permission
Americannoun
-
authorization granted to do something; formal consent.
to ask permission to leave the room.
-
the act of permitting.
noun
Other Word Forms
- nonpermission noun
- permissioned adjective
- permissory adjective
- self-permission noun
Etymology
Origin of permission
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin permissiōn-, stem of permissiō “a yielding, giving leave,” from permiss(us) “given leave” (past participle of permittere “to let go through, give leave”; permit 1 ) + -iō -ion
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.
Last month the SEC questioned Egan-Jones’s capacity to “consistently produce credit ratings with integrity” on some debt instruments that Egan-Jones was seeking permission to rate.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
“It gives you the permission to go to places that otherwise would be too unbearably saccharin.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
The Iranian Navy warned ships anchored near the strait that they would need Tehran’s permission to cross.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
Wireless Festival was later cancelled after the government refused permission for West to enter the UK.
From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026
After he asked Washington for permission to marry a young woman from another plantation, Sheels and the young woman plotted to flee aboard a ship in September 1799.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
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.
