green light, the

Idioms  

1. Permission to go ahead, as in The chief gave us the green light for starting this project. This term originated in the late 1800s for the signal used by railroads to indicate that a train could proceed. It was transferred to more general use in the first half of the 1900s.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

green light, the

Elon Musk is still waiting for Chinese officials to green light the car company’s Full Self-Driving technology.

From Barron's ● May 14, 2026

In our video call with Mr Explosive, he appears silhouetted and flanked by red and green light, the colours of the Iranian flag.

From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2026

The ruling last month that had appeared to green light the latest planned auction was handed down by the High Court in Pretoria, which will now review whether to allow an appeal of its decision.

From New York Times ● Jan. 18, 2024

The board is expected to decide early next year on whether to green light the blueprint.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2023

It was a pale green light, the kind you see from one of those snap-activated glow sticks; it lit the stairwell, and then everything was suddenly dark again.

From "Winger" by Andrew Smith

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