sanctioned
Americanadjective
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authorized, approved, or allowed.
Locke's main argument was that unlimited accumulation of wealth was moral, religiously sanctioned, and logical.
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officially or formally ratified or confirmed.
The event is run exclusively in association with the National Franchise Association, so participating franchisees have all met the NFA-sanctioned code of ethics.
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penalized, especially by way of discipline or to force compliance with legal obligations.
The embargo had no real impact—but how often have we ever seen a sanctioned political leader say, “OK, I guess I’ll give in now”?
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sanctioned
Explanation
If something’s sanctioned it’s officially approved. Now that your mom has finally come around, watching football with your friends on Sunday is a sanctioned ritual. When something’s sanctioned, it’s been approved by an authority, like your mom or your school, or it follows established rules or traditions. Eating ham on Easter might be a sanctioned tradition in your family. The word can also be used to say that something has been approved or authorized in a legal sense. You may read about a sanctioned treaty that has been signed by all members of the United Nations.
Vocabulary lists containing sanctioned
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
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"The Hunger Games" Vocabulary from Chapter 3
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167 Vocabulary words from the Supreme Court's DOMA Decision
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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.
Our investigation followed the money through a network of North Korean IT workers and cybercriminals, eventually reaching a company sanctioned in the U.S. in connection to Pyongyang’s weapons program.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
More than 630 vessels are sanctioned as of mid-August 2026, meaning they are banned from EU ports.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Some customers who were initially denied refunds told the Journal that when they tried to contest the decisions through the company’s only sanctioned avenue for legal disputes—private arbitration—they hit a wall.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Both had previously been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department following Cuba's 2021 anti-government protests.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Midwifery was not illegal in the state of Idaho, but it had not yet been sanctioned.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
