permit¹

[verb per-mit; noun pur-mit, per-mit]

See more synonyms for permit on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), per·mit·ted, per·mit·ting.

to allow to do something: Permit me to explain.
to allow to be done or occur: The law does not permit the sale of such drugs.
to tolerate; agree to: a law permitting Roman Catholicism in England.

to afford opportunity for, or admit of: vents to permit the escape of gases.

verb (used without object), per·mit·ted, per·mit·ting.

to grant permission; allow liberty to do something.
to afford opportunity or possibility: Write when time permits.
to allow or admit (usually followed by of): statements that permit of no denial.

noun

an authoritative or official certificate of permission; license: a fishing permit.
a written order granting special permission to do something.
permission.

Origin of permit¹

1425–75; late Middle English < Latin permittere to let go through, give leave, equivalent to per- per- + mittere to let or make (someone) go. See admit, commit, etc.

Related formsper·mit·ted·ly, adverbper·mit·tee

[pur-mi-tee] /ˌpɜr mɪˈti/, nounper·mit·ter, nounnon·per·mit·ted, adjectiveun·per·mit·ted, adjectiveun·per·mit·ting, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for permit on Thesaurus.com

8. franchise.

Synonym study

1. See allow.

Antonyms

1. refuse.

permit²

[pur-mit]

noun

a pompano, Trachinotus falcatus, of the waters off the West Indies.

Origin of permit²

1880–85, Americanism; apparently by folk etymology < Spanish palometa palometa

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for permit

Contemporary Examples

“Please, please do not permit this to happen here in Florida,” wrote Cris K. Smith of East Polk County.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails
Jackie Kucinich
January 9, 2015
Before we get to all that, permit me a brief reflection on this matter of Steve Scalise.
Steve Scalise and the Right’s Ridiculous Racial Blame Game
Michael Tomasky
January 2, 2015
We are developing a strategy next year that will permit them to march in the street.
Before the Bros, SantaCon Was as an Anti-Corporate Protest
David Freedlander
December 12, 2014
Or perhaps EBT programs could permit the purchase of ethical items based on a sliding price scale.
The Bioethicist Turned Butcher
Elizabeth Picciuto
September 28, 2014
The organizers of the protest, who did not have a permit for the sit-in, refused to leave and police began to arrest them in mass.
Occupy Climate Change! Hundreds Blame Capitalism at Flood Wall Street Rally
Jacob Siegel
September 22, 2014

Historical Examples

May Heaven bless you, and permit us to meet again in another world, if not in this!
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
We can not permit ourselves to be narrowed and dwarfed by slogans and phrases.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various
You permit your heart (little did I think it was such a froward one) to recoil.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
By the law of God it could not be so annulled as to permit of the re-marriage of the parties.
The Grand Old Man
Richard B. Cook
If we permit our economy to drift and decline, the vulnerable will suffer most.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various

British Dictionary definitions for permit

permit

verb (pəˈmɪt) -mits, -mitting or -mitted

(tr) to grant permission to do somethingyou are permitted to smoke
(tr) to consent to or tolerateshe will not permit him to come
(when intr, often foll by of; when tr, often foll by an infinitive) to allow the possibility (of)the passage permits of two interpretations; his work permits him to relax nowadays

noun (ˈpɜːmɪt)

an official certificate or document granting authorization; licence
permission, esp written permission

Derived Formspermitter, noun

Word Origin

C15: from Latin permittere, from per- through + mittere to send

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 permit

v.

late 15c., from Middle French permetre and directly from Latin permittere "let pass, let go, let loose; give up, hand over; let, allow, grant, permit," from per- "through" (see per) + mittere "let go, send" (see mission). Related: Permitted; permitting.

n.

"written statement of permission or license," 1714, from permit (v.).

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Synonyms

Synonym study

Antonyms

permit2

Origin of permit2

Examples from the Web for permit

Contemporary Examples

“Please, please do not permit this to happen here in Florida,” wrote Cris K. Smith of East Polk County.

Before we get to all that, permit me a brief reflection on this matter of Steve Scalise.

We are developing a strategy next year that will permit them to march in the street.

Or perhaps EBT programs could permit the purchase of ethical items based on a sliding price scale.

The organizers of the protest, who did not have a permit for the sit-in, refused to leave and police began to arrest them in mass.

Historical Examples

May Heaven bless you, and permit us to meet again in another world, if not in this!

We can not permit ourselves to be narrowed and dwarfed by slogans and phrases.

You permit your heart (little did I think it was such a froward one) to recoil.

By the law of God it could not be so annulled as to permit of the re-marriage of the parties.

If we permit our economy to drift and decline, the vulnerable will suffer most.